I'll Take the Tears
by Virgo Writer
Summary: Ash and Misty were torn apart by a meaningless fight, but 20yrs later their lives become intertwined once more as their children begin their Pokemon journey's, reingniting the forgotten flame of a love that lapsed. AAMR co-authored by Xx Kusuangi xX
1. Torn in Two

**I'll Take the Tears**

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

* * *

_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

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I'll Take the Tears – Torn in Two

"I hate you Ash Ketchum," Misty Waterflower screamed at the fifteen year old Pokemon trainer before her. "I really do, I never want to see your ugly face again. You hear me!"

He scoffed at her remarks. "Don't worry, Mist', the feelings mutual," he replied still reverting to her nickname despite the unpleasantness of the whole situation. "Just go now I don't mind, you've got exactly what you wanted. You know if I never have to see your ugly mug again for the rest of my life, it will be too soon."

It all felt wrong, her words they weren't forced but they seemed unreal like they shouldn't be happening, but they were.

Misty slapped Ash across the face, she was too angry to cry about the words or even his disregard for her feelings; she was numb and she just didn't care anymore.

She had been taken over by instinct; all she wanted to do was make Ash hurt just as much as she was deep inside. But it seemed impossible for her to do so, her pain was deep and emotional that would never go away, the best she could do was inflict something physical that would hopefully leave a bruise.

But Ash was hurting just as much as she was, and not just from the slap. Her words and his own were inflicting wounds so deep that he knew that they would never heal. He didn't mean them, the words that seemed to escape his mouth with a mind of their own; he didn't mean a single one of them.

But Misty didn't know that, and it was already too late to take them back.

"Well then I guess I'll make both of us happy asshole," she replied. "God knows that that's all I've wanted to do all these years. Maybe I can travel with someone who actually has enough brains to know what he's doing."

"Go," Ash replied. "I heard Gary was looking for fresh cheerleaders - although what he'd want with a hag like you, I'd never know. I'd say good luck Misty, but frankly I just don't really give damn what you do."

Misty shot Ash a glare and pursed her lips as she pulled together her things. Togepei cried quietly in her arms as she tried her best to calm it, but all that it really wanted was for its mommy and daddy to be happy.

"Happy Birthday, Misty," she muttered to herself as she walked away from the campsite and everything that mattered in her life.

Ash watched the girl go regrettably as he searched for the strength to call her back and tried to remember when everything had just started to go wrong.

"I love you," he whispered so quietly that even those still in the campsite didn't hear his last words to the girl he loved.

He couldn't believe that his last moments with Misty, could be so bad. He knew that if she ever left it would be painful, but this; this was beyond painful. It was excruciating and all he wanted to do was lay down and die.

After all, he had no reason to live anymore. His reason had just ran out of his life, just up and left him with no one to blame but himself.

And he did.

He searched his mind, trying to recall how it had all turned so terribly wrong.

It had all started out so perfectly. He had woken Misty up bright and early before sunrise to wish her happy birthday.

"Surprise, Misty," he said as she awoke from a peaceful slumber. "I know you thought I forgot, but I didn't. Happy Birthday, Mist'."

She had been hinting at it all week trying to get him to say something so he just pretended to be the dense moron she always teased him to be and she thought this year wouldn't be any different from those when she went to her sisters in Cerulean City.

But he had remembered. He had been thinking about it for the past few months to make sure he got her something really special, something she really wanted.

He got her a bike. The electric blue 24speed that seemed to have been left behind at the campsite as a bitter memory of the girl it was supposed to belong to.

It all changed so fast and so subtly that they didn't even realise it had until they were yelling 'I hate you' at the top of their lungs.

But he didn't hate her, in fact quite the opposite. He was in love with Misty Waterflower and had been for sometime now and knew that he always would. And today he had planned to tell her that.

But then I guess that sometimes fate has a mind of its own because it seems this Ash and Misty were never meant to be.

~ to be continued ~

I'm just making slight changes now for consistency. Getting rid of the Shakespeare bit for starters, which I think was off-putting for most readers and gave a poor sense of the purpose of this story.

Please review.

Xx Kusanagi xX and Virgo Writer.


	2. A New Generation

**I'll Take the Tears**

"I see that you're in love, I know it's not with me. But I don't want the truth to haunt my memory . . ."

Just made a few changes because I realized that it was very ambiguous at times who I was talking about. I haven't decided what I'm going to do with this (I want to get Ash and Misty (elders) together but not sure how I would intend to do that) but it seemed easier to make some sort of distinction. Although my preference for Ash is Ashton, Misty's son is Ashley which allows some disambiguation there and Ash's daughter is called Myst rather than Misty by everyone but her mother thus allowing us to disambiguate that one too.

Note, that it is _roughly_ twenty years on. Ash and Misty are now about 34/35. I also just changed Ashley and Myst's ages to 10, because I don't think I wrote them very 12, and the only reason they were ever 12 was for the romance element.

DISCLAIMER: Guess who doesn't own Pokemon?

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_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

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I'll Take the Tears – A New Generation: 20 years on

~ 20 years later ~

Misty Waterflower stared out the window towards the ocean flowing distantly into the horizon. She stared past her husband, Stephen Hunt and beyond even the sunset in the distance.

She looked beyond reality and saw the love that she left behind in the Jhoto regions beyond Kanto.

"Is something wrong, Misty?" Stephen asked from across the table in her favourite restaurant in Fuchsia City.

Misty shook her head. "I'm ok," she replied, "just tired."

Now I'm sure your wondering why she was still Misty Waterflower and not Misty Hunt, it was simply because it felt wrong to give it up. Sure she loved Stephen, she really did care for him and she was happy with him, but her heart belonged to Ash Ketchum no matter how hard she tried to change that fact.

Stephen was kind and sweet and everything Ash was. He had dark brown hair and almost black eyes. He was a Pokémon trainer turned researcher when he realised that he was more interested in finding new Pokémon than battling them.

He reminded her so much of Ash with one difference, Stephen loved her. At least she thought that was different.

"Are you worried about, Ash?" he asked.

Misty gasped suddenly but recovered quickly when she realised what Stephen meant.

He wasn't talking about the handsome Pokémon trainer who had stolen her heart and broken it in two twenty years ago. He was talking about the nine-year-old boy beside her who aspired to the same dream of his namesake.

His name was of course Ashley Satoshi Waterflower, and everyday she could see more and more of her Ash shinning through.

He wasn't quite twelve yet, it was only a matter of a few days before he was, and he was already a lot taller than Ash was at that age thanks to that Waterflower trait. He had his father's dark hair but Misty's sea blue eyes and smile. He wanted to follow in the footsteps of his hero, the great Ash Ketchum the holder of the title Worlds Greatest Pokemon Master.

It seemed he had reached his goal in the end; without her.

But things had changed since the times of our hero's journeys through the different leagues. Kanto was a much safer place then despite the constant attacks from team rocket. It was a lot harder to get your license now and you had to know what you were doing before you started.

But Ashley knew exactly what he was doing, he'd been practising for so long and she'd taught him everything she had learnt from her time with Brock and Ash.

In a few days they would be in Pallet sending him off on his journey. Tracey had taken over from Professor Oak when he retired 5 years ago and he had requested that they come to see him in Pallet so he could start him off properly.

Misty knew it was his dream, but she knew she was going to miss him when he was gone. She wasn't sure how she could live without him and the thought brought tears to her eyes.

"Don't cry, mom," Ashley told her. "I won't be long," he smiled. "I'll be back home with that cup before you even start to miss me."

Misty smiled and kissed his forehead. "I hope so."

* * *

"I can't believe you, Ash Ketchum."

Ash sighed to himself. _'What have I done now?'_ Ash thought exasperatedly to himself.

He had only been back from the Indigo Plateaux for two minutes and already his darling wife was yelling at him.

He just wanted to lie down and go to sleep for a few days, he had been there for ten weeks without a moments rest and he only had a month before he had to defend his champion of champions title in the orange islands then after that he would be off to Jhoto, then the element league, a few others that he couldn't remember the names of and before long he would be back at the Indigo Plateaux before he had to set off to the world championship as well as a few other leagues that weren't quite as annual as the Kanto league.

No wonder he needed sleep. He still had weeks of promo to do and he wasn't in the mood for whatever Chelsea had up her sleeve.

Somehow he had imagined that being the greatest Pokémon master and the champion of about ten different leagues to be a lot more fun.

"Daddy, you're back," a young girl called as she ran into the room.

She had dark strawberry blonde hair and startling chocolate brown eyes and it seemed that these days she was the only thing that ever brought a smile to his face.

You see his marriage was on the rocks, not that it had ever been that stable. He didn't love Chelsea, not like he loved Misty, not even like the love he felt for his daughter, most of the time he actually hated her.

He knew Chelsea was cheating on him, he could tell by the way she guiltily turned her eyes elsewhere. Many people thought he was dense, but he wasn't stupid he just couldn't be bothered doing anything about it. He barely saw her as is and he knew that if he filed for divorce he would have to say goodbye to the only thing that brought him joy in this godforsaken world.

He didn't want to have to do that again.

"So did you have fun without me, Myst?" Ash asked his little girl.

She took a glance at her step-mother who glared at the two of them. She just shrugged her shoulders though secretly making faces at her father when she was sure Chelsea wasn't looking. Ash held back a smile so as not to attract the unwanted attention of his darling wife.

"Hey why don't you go play outside with Quilava while me and your mother talk," Ash suggested handing her the Pokeball containing the cute little fire Pokémon.

"Ok, daddy," she said taking it in both hands and ran outside.

"I honestly can't believe you, Ash," Chelsea said once she was sure that Myst was beyond hearing range.

"You know it would help if you told me exactly what it was that you can't believe this time," Ash said his voice remaining calm and emotionless. He found that this was the best way to deal with Chelsea, to be as callous as she was.

"I want a divorce," she replied. "I'm sick of hardly seeing you and being left alone for months on end with no one to talk to but her."

"She has a name," Ash told her coldly.

"Oh, yes," Chelsea said drolly. "Little Mystique Ketchum. Sometimes I think the only reason you keep me around is to look after your little bastard."

"Don't you dare say that about my daughter," he growled dangerously. It was a constant theme in the arguments. Chelsea seemed to enjoy rubbing the circumstances of his first marriage and daughters birth in his face, letting it hang as a constant threat between them - letting him know that she wouldn't hesitate to use it against him if it ever came down to it.

"I wouldn't dare, darling," she told him in a tone that reminded him of a snake. "She's the only thing you care about. I'm sick of being second place to that brat of yours," she told him. "Either do something about it, or I'm walking."

"Go then," he responded. "There isn't any hope for this marriage. You're right - I married you so that Myst would have a mother, and you just married for the fame. It seems that both of us have overstayed our usefulness to one another. I've closed my eyes to everything that's gone on behind my back - sometimes I even justified what you were doing, blaming myself for your cruelty, but I give up on that. Just go."

"Are you just giving up on our marriage?" she asked.

Ash scoffed. "You gave up on this marriage long before I did," he told her angrily. "You think I didn't know that you've been cheating on me?"

She scowled, her face tightening at the thought of Ash knowing the truth. "Well, if that's how you feel Ash," she told him. "I'm going to my mothers." She paused, knowing there was one last way left to hurt him. "Mystique Kasumi Ketchum come here right now," she called.

"What is it?" Myst asked, glancing cautiously between the blonde haired woman and her father.

"Come with me," Chelsea as she grabbed Mystique roughly by the hand. "We're leaving," she said pointedly, sending a smug glare in Ash's direction.

He gaped as his daughter tried to pull away, sensing that there was something wrong with the situation. "I don't want to go out," she complained, wrestling against Chelsea's grip. "I need to show something to dad."

"I didn't give you a choice in the matter," she told her. "Bet you're regretting having me sign those adoption papers now, Mr. Pokemon Master?" Chelsea asked with her cruelest look yet.

"Chelsea, don't!" Ash cried, literally begging her now as stepped closer. "Take whatever you like. The house, the cars, you can even have the beach house on Cinnabar. Just don't take her away from me. She's all I have left.

"Don't take away the one thing I care for in life," he finished quietly - desperately - bowing his head in despair.

Chelsea smiled like she had gotten just she wanted. "I was hoping you'd say that, honey," she said in the same sickly sweet tone that had fooled him into believing she would be a good mother for his daughters. "Keep her," she told him, finally releasing her krabby like grip on Mystique's wrist. "God knows I can't stand children as it is."

She left quickly, slamming the door as she left, although not before leaving a card with Ash as to where he could contact her divorce lawyer to make arrangements to settle.

Ash sighed with relief as he picked up his daughter knowing that he would never have to say goodbye again.

"C'mon," he said as he fitted her into a more comfortable grip. "I think the two of us should go see grandma?"

Myst nodded at the suggestion, and the two were on their way.

* * *

"Why am I not surprised?" Delilah asked her son. "I told you not to marry that little tart but do you ever listen to me?"

"You said that about the last one, too," Ash reminded her, thinking back to his last wife, Mystique's mother who had died not long after child birth, merely months into their marriage. "I figures you just wanted me to marry Misty instead," Ash shrugged.

"Well of course I wanted you to marry Misty," Delilah sighed. "But I definitely didn't want you to marry her. Now how on earth are you going to look after your daughter? You can't just leave her like last time - she's not a baby anymore."

"I was just going to take her around with me," Ash replied. "I know she'd love it, she loves Pokemon and she loves watching me battle."

"Ashy, you-" she began, giving him a stern look that already told him it was a bad idea.

"Grandma?" Myst asked, cutting off her grandmother as she walked into the room carrying a large photo album. "Who's that?"

Delilah looked at the picture and smiled. It was one of Ash and Misty sitting together with Togepi and Pikachu on their laps.

"She's pretty isn't she?" Delilah asked pulling the child up on the couch next to her and the photo album onto her knee, she was glad that Myst was small for age.

Myst nodded. She had always felt a little self-conscious about her hair colour, and so seeing someone with hair even brighter than her own looking so lovely made her feel a little more secure. Seeing someone so carefree and beautiful made her think it was okay to stand out so much in the crowd.

"She was a water Pokémon trainer and one of the Sensational Sisters of Cerulean. The most sensational of all as I remember it," Delia explained giving Ash a look. "She was your dad's best friend in the entire universe," she added smiling at the thought of the two together like they use to be.

"Even more than Uncle Brock and Tracey?" she asked naively, unaware of her grandmothers secret looks. Delilah nodded knowingly, staring lovingly at the long forgotten picture of the daughter she never had. "What was her name?"

"Her name was Mist'."

"Just like me," Mystique smiled.

"She's the reason you got your name," Delilah smiled. "The reason why the two things that your father loves the most share the same name."

"Can you tell me a story about her?" Myst asked her father.

Myst shared her father's curious nature. She always wanted to know more about things, she could never leave anything alone and she could barely sit still for five minutes without fidgeting.

Ash sighed. "It's been so long and there are just so many stories to tell," he said sadly as he too stared at the red head in the picture. "I don't think I'll know what to say."

"Why do I get the feeling you're not talking about the story anymore?" Delilah laughed. "I'll tell you a story about when they went to the orange islands.

"It was when they reached the island of Arshia," Delilah continued. "There was a festival on and there was a pretty maiden called Melody struggling for Ash's attentions but he didn't see her, he only ever saw Misty . . ."

Myst sat up listening to the story and staring at the picture before her of a girl with fiery red hair and cerulean blue eyes trying to imagine it all just as her grandmother described. She wished that she could have met Misty, she seemed so wonderful.

"Daddy, was she nice?" Misty asked as Delia finished her tale.

Ash nodded looking towards the picture himself. It brought back many happy memories and made him wonder why he had ever let Misty go.

"The nicest," he replied pulling her into his lap, "though she had a temper as fiery as her hair."

"When I turn ten, can I go on a journey like Misty and you?" she asked.

Ash smiled and set her down on the chair as he went to go find something. He was back in a few seconds with two things. An old red and white Pokémon league cap and a Pokedex.

"Definitely," he said placing the cap on her head. It was a little big and slipped over her eyes as she tried to look up at the two adults.

"Its next month isn't it?" Delia asked.

Myst nodded enthusiastically making the hat fall off her head.

"I'm going to miss you so much," Delia sobbed as she grabbed the child in her arms.

"Nana," Myst giggled. "I haven't even left yet."

"But you will," she sighed.

"Yes," Ash sighed. "But first you need to start training."

"I'll go call, Tracey," Delia said.

"I can't wait," Myst smiled.

~ to be continued ~

So anyway now you've read it now for the most important part of the entire process, the bit where you review and tell me/us what you think.

By the way, were alternating so the next chapter will be written by Xx Kusanagi xX.

Virgo Writer and Xx Kusanagi xX

So this is my last free weekend before I'm back to uni, so I've decided to try and put all of my excess chapters up. What I mean by this is that I have a tendency to hold back a chapter to take the pressure off myself and so that's what I have for you. If you love AAML I'm not sure you're going to like this one - I'm not even sure I like it and I came up with the idea for it.

Ok, so according to the authors note here at the end which I wrote a long time ago I have more than one chapter spare to this, but you still get the intention. I think I know where it is, so review if you want it.


	3. All That You Can't Leave Behind

**I'll Take the Tears**

DISCLAIMER: I think with 23 stories disclaimers are a bit like answering machines now - everybody knows what they're for and what they do so it's really unnecessary for me to say anything. Please refer to earlier chapters or alternative stories if you are still confused.

"It's never too late to relight the fire. It never stopped burning for me. The flame it never died inside of me . . ."

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_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

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I'll Take the Tears – All That You Can't Leave Behind

"Happy Birthday, Ash!"

Misty's face was glowing, it was the morning of her son's twelfth birthday, and his last day at home before he set out on his adventure from Pallet Town to become a Pokemon trainer. He was going to become the greatest, to beat them all, just like his hero.

She had almost been dreading this day, the day he left. She knew it was coming, she had for quite some time, but it was still a bit of a shock to know that in about twenty four hours she would see her son off on an adventure, just like her own when she was a little older than he was.

Misty was so ecstatic, she couldn't be happier for him.

Her son Ashley however, was not quite so pleased to put it lightly.

"Mom," he moaned lightly rolling over on his side and covering his head with a Pikachu duvet so as to shield his face from the bright light streaming from above him. "It's six in the morning, please, can't I sleep just a little longer."

Ashley had barely slept a wink last night. He had been tossing and turning around most of the evening thinking about Pokémon and the day he would become a master. He had been eagerly anticipating this day for the last three years, but all the anxiety and excitement had kept him awake and it showed in his tired, sleep deprived eyes.

"Ashley, you know it's your own fault you never slept last night -" It seems that some things never change. "– now come and give your mother a big hug," Misty said as she grabbed her now fully awake son by the arms and pulled him into a suffocating hug. "I can't believe my little Ash is finally grown up and ready to travel," she sobbed happily. "Now hurry up and get changed, we have a surprise waiting for you downstairs."

As the door closed, Ashley collapsed back and was about to at least try to go back to sleep when Misty's angry head popped out from behind the door thanks to good old fashioned female intuition. No words were needed to be said, he just got up quickly and changed. His mother was the only person who was able to put the fear of god into him but then from what he's heard from his mother's friends Brock and Tracey, she had always been good at that.

Ashley staggered downstairs and looked around, nothing looked like a surprise, still the same old house they had been staying in for the past few days while in Pallet. He walked slowly into the kitchen, scratching his head in a clueless sort of way. He was immediately greeted by the embarrassing sight of his father sitting at the table wearing one of those silly looking party hats and reading a newspaper as though it was the everyday normal thing to do.

_'Oh great, it's 6 AM and he is wearing a party hat . . .'_

He was about to sit down next to his father when his mother walked into the kitchen, although – thankfully – she had opted not to wear the party hat, one thing he was very grateful for. He didn't even want to think of the psychological side-effects that would have on him.

He watched her carefully as he noticed an almost mischievous glint in his mothers eye. She seemed to be carrying something behind her. Ashley's face lit up like a Christmas tree when she placed a big present on the table in front of him.

He darted towards the present, but was stopped by his mother, who snapped a party hat on his head and pointed for him to sit down. He hoped that nobody ever found out about this day.

"Now, Ashley, no need to rush. We do have all day," Misty said in a slightly warning tone as a quick image of Ash Ketchum popped into her head, but was forced out just as quickly as it had appeared. She shook her head trying to rattle some sense into her brain, this was no time to be thinking of him of all people.

Misty disappeared for a second and returned carrying a cake shaped like a pokeball with a big twelve painted on the middle in icing. Ashley was blushing like mad, this was worse than his mom reminding him to put on clean underwear before he went to camp in front of all of his friends. Sometimes he thought she did all this on purpose just to embarrass him. Again he prayed no one would ever find out about this.

"Mom, you shouldn't have," he told her. "Really," he added honestly wondering why his mom seemed to be the only one who didn't have to wear one of those dorky party hats. He was almost positive she had forced it upon his father in much the same way she had him. His mother seemed to be good at that sort of thing.

He suddenly felt a little sad, almost nostalgic. He would miss them, that was for sure no matter how embarrassing they were, but it was something he had to do. We all have to make sacrifices for our dreams, and he was prepared to make this one. It wouldn't be so bad, he'd be visiting Cerulean in no time.

Misty smiled at him as she walked up and cut off a big slice and put it on the plate in front of him.

"Happy birthday, Ashley," she said for what could possibly have been about the millioneth time that morning. "I can't believe you're twelve already, you sure have grown up quickly." She cut a piece of cake as she spoke and handed it to her husband before cutting a small slice for herself.

After all the cake had been eaten, Misty declared it was time to open Ashley's present.

Much like Ash Ketchum, his namesake, subtlety was not one of Ashley Waterflower's more dominant traits. He tore through the wrapping like a pack of wild dogs on a three-legged cat. When he saw his present, he nearly collapsed with joy.

It was all a Pokemon trainer could have ever wanted. It contained a set of six pokeballs for capturing Pokemon, an official Pokemon league backpack, a medicine pack stuffed with all the remedies you could ever want, and a thick book on how to be a successful Pokemon trainer written by the one and only legendary Pokemon Master Ash Ketchum.

When Ashley had regained control of himself, he gave his parents the biggest hugs he had ever given them. He was about to start looking at the book when Misty spoke up interrupting him from the reverie he had begun to slip into.

"I have one last surprise for you," she said as she wandered off into the bedroom and came back carrying a bundle of cloth. She slowly began unwrapping the cloth and revealed an old, but surprisingly shiny pokeball. Then she opened the pokeball and out came a Pokemon shaped like a star with a beautiful gem core.

"Staryu, I would like you to meet my son Ashley, and your new trainer," Misty said to the water Pokemon before turning to smile at her son.

"_Hiya_," it replied to its former master before turning to look at its new one.

Normal Staryu's aren't usually exceptionally strong pokmon, but Ashley had heard from his aunts that his mothers wasn't anything like normal staryu and mentioning all the battles she had won using only this very Pokemon. It was easy to see it's strength just from a glance, its armour was well polished and sturdy and it's gem glowed brighter than any star.

"Ashley, I want you to have Staryu," she told him confirming what she had already said to staryu. "I know you wanted a Pikachu just like the Pokemon Master, but I thought that maybe this would be just as good a first Pokemon. He is strong, and I know you will like his company, take good care of him for me."

This last comment was directed at Staryu rather than Ashley and was replied with a quick 'hiya' as it promised to carry out its old Masters last wish.

Ashley was ecstatic, he may have wanted a Pikachu, but staryu was also great. It had plenty of powerful attacks like hydro pump and water gun and would be an essential Pokemon when going for the boulder badge in the first gym. He ran up to his mom and gave her an even bigger hug than before; all of a sudden, waking up so early didn't seem like such a bad idea.

Ashley spent the rest of the day with his mother and father, with his mom teaching him the basics about Pokemon fighting and taking care of your Pokemon and his dad giving him a few tips on certain Pokemon and types that seemed to have been left out of the pokedex.

The whole time, Misty was constantly reminded of her days as a Pokemon trainer. Every time her son mentioned he wanted to be a Pokemon master just like the great Ash Ketchum, her heart skipped a beat, sometimes even two, for she had never truly gotten over him.

The day went by quickly and before they knew it the time had come for Ashley to go to bed. Tomorrow they would go to see Tracey at Oak's labs so he could begin his training and so she could say goodbye to another Ash that she hoped would be coming back.

Stephen had already said his goodbyes. He had to go to a scientific convention in Pewter City, which meant he had left that evening despite attempted begging on Misty and Ashley's fronts to make him stay behind. Sadly he couldn't, he wouldn't make it in time for the convention unless he left that evening, so he said his goodbyes then and wished his son good luck on his journey. It was something that Misty had come to terms with many years ago - Stephen's job would always come first, even on the most important day of their son's life.

The evening was cold, and Misty sat alone in the lounge remembering the past, remembering that insignificant argument they had that forced her to leave, remembering his last words to her. Even after all there years they still stung as though they had just been said.

She promised herself she wouldn't cry over him anymore, that she wouldn't let him get to her, she was with Stephen now. No matter how she tried to deny it, to push it away she knew deep down in side that her heart still belonged to Ash Ketchum.

She walked over to a small cupboard where she kept all her memories hidden. She opened it up and removed an old, battered, red knapsack and a creased photograph from inside of it. It was the very same photograph that Ash and his daughter had been looking at only a few nights ago.

It was of the two of them, just Ash and Misty as young teens full of carefree dreams and naïve hopes.

After the first tear hit the ground, the rest followed suit automatically and pretty soon Misty was crying silently to herself. She couldn't define one reason for her tears, it was because her son was leaving, it was because of Ash Ketchum as it always was and it was everything that was wrong in her life.

"Mom, are you ok?" a voice asked from behind Misty.

Her head shot up and she quickly stuffed the photograph in her pocket. She wiped her tearfilled eyes and turned around to face her son.

"Nothing's wrong, sweety," she told him forcing a smile onto her lips for his sake. "I was just a little scared, I'm going to miss you when you're gone," Misty said, only telling her son half the truth.

"You don't have to worry mom. I'll be fine," he said comfortingly as he walked up and hugged her mother somehow knowing that was what she needed right now. "You'll see," he added with a smile.

He was unaware of his mother's problems, but he knew something was wrong. He didn't think that his departure was all that was on her mind right now, but he shrugged it off.

"It's late," she said changing the subject in an effort to take her mind off other matters. "We should both get some sleep, we have to be up early tomorrow. Tracey was never really the patient sort despite the fact that he spent most of his life as a Pokemon watcher."

She led Ashley up to his bed and tucked him not leaving for her room before placing a goodnight kiss on his forehead knowing it would be the last for a long time. She then moved to her own bed and tried to get some sleep no matter how futile she knew it was.

"Damn you Ash Ketchum," she muttered quietly to herself as she began to drift off to a dreamless sleep. "My life is just fine the way it is. Why do you always have to just barge in and make things so frustratingly complicated?"

And with that last thought sleep settled in and silence filled the house.

~ to be continued ~

Authors Incoherent Babbling

Heya, I'm Mike, the co-author of this fine fic, I hope my chapter suits up to my partners standards, and I hope she doesn't chew me out for writing it wrong or anything J.

Hope you guys liked the chapter, just wanted to introduce Ashley's character, there is a lot more of him to come in the future, oh, and by the way, I am going to be covering Ashley's personality, while my co-author (Virgo Writer) is going to be doing most of the romantic stuff, hehehe. Hope you guys like the chapter.

Xx Kusanagi xX

The other author's more coherent ranting

Surprisingly got a bit of an urge to write some of this today - it was just a thought that came to my head starting with Ash (not saying which) uttering the words "I officially HATE Pokemon!" I think that's a little bit of a teaser there for an upcoming chapter. Please review, specially if you've got any good ideas for this. I want this to be an AAMR, but I'm not sure how. I already got rid of Chelsea in the last chapter, so Ash is free as a bird, but now I've got to work out how to get rid of Stephen. Decisions, decisions.


	4. Hindsight

**I'll Take the Tears**

Unexpectedly, I just got some inspiration for this fic on a new direction to take it in and even wrote a couple of chapters (what a shock). This is a pre-new direction chapter so it probably implies an entirely different track, but can't really get to the later ones without it. The original story was intended to focus mostly on Ashley and Myst, but the new direction means that Ash and Misty will get a lot more face time which is yay for Pokeshippers!

DISCLAIMER: The only thing I own is Stephen who I secretly hate so I see no reason to go into it further.

"How is it now that I can tell you that I love you? Why is it only now that it's too late? What can we do the love that we had is torn in two, so you take the smiles from all of our years. I'll take the tears . . ."

* * *

_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

_

* * *

  
_

I'll Take the Tears – Hindsight

Ash sighed as he looked around the room that his daughter had once resided in. She had only left that very morning, and already he missed her like he had never missed another person in his life.

Well, not including _her_ obviously.

She used to spend as little time in it as possible. She was like him; she preferred to be outside and in open spaces letting nature provide her bed.

In that sense she was the opposite to her namesake. Misty Waterflower had insisted on having a bed and would constantly complain when they were camping in the middle of a forest for the night. Sure over the years he got the feeling that she had gotten used to it and only complained for the sake of complaining.

He loved camping. He loved sleeping under the stars looking up at them and making pictures in his mind away from the city lights. Maybe that was why no matter how far away he would go he always ended back in Pallet, it was the only place he knew of where you could see the stars perfectly in all their glory.

Well actually, there was one other place where the stars were even clearer than Pallet. It was a place nearby that he visited whenever he got the chance. It was right in the middle of the Viridian forest in a small clearing around a lake and a beautiful waterfall.

He could just look up at the stars from there for hours painting pictures with the stars until all he could see was her face staring down at him. Somehow, no matter what was happening in his life the stars would always form her face and he couldn't help but smile at the thought.

He wondered what her life was like, if she had moved on with life without him, if she'd forgotten about him. If maybe sometimes she would look up at the sky and see his face smiling down on her.

_'Yeah right Ketchum,'_ he scorned at himself. _'She hates you remember. You don't tend to picture people you hate in the sky unless they just happen to be falling towards the earth at 1000km/h before being flattened into a bloody pulp.'_

She was lost to him now.

In a way, they both were. Though one was more lost than the other.

And he missed them both dreadfully. They were his world, his sun, his life, his heart, and his soul. He was nothing but the shell of a man without either of them and he struggled to go on, knowing that they were both so far away.

But he knew that one day, his daughter would return to him just as he had returned to his mother many times. Misty, his once best friend, was lost to him forever.

He was never going to see her again, and if by chance they would catch a glimpse of one another as they walked along the street, she would simply turn on her heal and walk away unwilling to acknowledge his presence.

He was nothing to her now, nothing more than some spec of dirt ruining her perfect existence.

Ash sighed woefully.

Why couldn't he have seen the extent to which he loved her until it was already too late to admit that he did? Why did he have to go on denying his feelings for her until there was nothing he could say to bring her back? Why did he have to fall in love with her of all people?

Of course, the answer to that last question was obvious to say the least. In his eyes she was perfect and in his eyes it was impossible not to fall in love with her.

But she didn't love him. She could never love him. He was just an imperfect spoiled little brat and he didn't deserve perfection.

And so he was doomed to loneliness because nobody would be good enough for him as long as they weren't her, and he wasn't brave enough to take his chance when he had it to tell her how he felt.

And that was why she was lost, why he was alone and why the only other person he had ever allowed himself to love shared such a likeness to the one he'd regrettably let get away.

* * *

Mystique Ketchum quickly glanced over her shoulder before reaching into the green bush on the edge of Pallet. She eyed her surrounding suspiciously before wheeling out the never been touched 24speed electric blue mountain bike and placing pichu into the basket.

Why she had to play mission impossible with the bike was completely oblivious to her and her Pokémon partner - a pichu of excellent breeding stock - but her grandmother had been very insistent that she not retrieve it until outside of Pallet.

When Delia saw Myst admiring the custom made bike that had been kept in perfect condition for over twenty years a plan had immediately formed in her head. She had smiled at her granddaughter in such a way that no one would ever suspect she was up to anything and told her she could have it.

"But grandma, I couldn't possibly take it on my journey," Myst had replied obviously shocked. "Look at it, its brand new. I wouldn't want to ruin it."

"Well actually its twenty years old," Delilah said to which Myst's eyes had widened even further in surprise. "And I want you to have it."

Eventually Delilah had managed to break through Myst's defences and make her accept the bike, however, she had to make sure of one thing. She wasn't sure how Ash would feel about Myst having this particular bike and she knew that it would bring up old memories so she had to have it so that Ash would never see the bike.

Everybody these days knew how much a bike helped on a journey. She was surprised that her dad had managed to get through as much as he had without one.

Things had changed since those days, but that wasn't even nearly enough to stop her. She was going to be great, and her dad was going to be so proud of her that nothing else would matter in the world and he'd forget about all the things making him so sad.

He'd forget about her awful mother and all the awful things she had said to them.

"Ok, Penny," Myst said, smiling down at her Pokémon companion. "Where to first?"

Penny shrugged, tilting her head at her master as she considered the prospect.

"Well I guess," Myst began, trying to reason her way towards some sort of decision, "the first badge we've got to get is the Boulder badge, right?" The pichu nodded in agreement. "So in order to beat Forrest and Uncle Brock's Pokémon, we're going to need a water Pokémon, right?" The pichu made an agreed sentiment once again. "So if we're going to get ourselves a water Pokémon we have to find some water."

"Pichu!" Penny agreed, sensing that this was the most logical conclusion that could have been reached.

"Let's see," Myst muttered to herself, putting her bag on the ground as she searched through it from a map. She quickly found their location – they were just on the outskirts of the Viridian Forest. According to the map there was a river than ran through forest, which was sure to harbour some water-type Pokémon.

Checking her bag once again, she checked her equipment. She had a fishing pole, a lure ball and various other bits and pieces that would come in handy, but she was missing one essential piece of equipment; a lure.

"Bloody hell," Myst sighed exasperatedly. "How am I supposed to hook a water Pokémon without a lure? I guess I could . . ."

Her musings trailed off as she a strange noise was heard coming from the forest nearby. "That's it!" a boy cried exasperatedly as he pressed his way through the trees. "I officially HATE Pokémon!"

A small pichu trailing by his feet whimpered at the boy's exclamation. He sighed, picking the baby Pokémon up and cuddled it in his arms.

"I'm sorry, Buzz," the boy said softly as he petted the pichu. "I didn't mean you."

Misty ran up to the pair, more than mildly intrigued by the boy's appearance. He was grubby and dishevelled, and looked a lot worse for wear generally. His arms were littered with cuts and bruises, and his clothes decorated with twigs and leaves.

"What on earth happened to you?" she asked bluntly, her voice filled with curiosity rather than concern. Myst had almost no conception of tact, which was really no surprise given the influence her dad had played in her life generally.

"What didn't happen to me?" the boy replied, his cerulean blue eyes narrowing at the large forest as he glanced back. "I've been on my journey for almost a month now and this is the first time I've been out of that god damn forest since I started.

"I hate Pokémon!" the boy exclaimed, causing Buzz to cover his ears. He lowered his voice and his eyes seemed to darken as he continued: "But not nearly as much as I hate trees."

"You must be starving," Myst proclaimed, looking slightly sympathetic.

"I had a whole bunch of food pellets," the boy explained, "but after a month of those you forget what real food tastes like. Where am I, by the way?"

"We're just outside of Pallet," Myst replied, eying him strangely.

"For crying out loud!" the boy exclaimed. "I've been on my journey for a month and I'm right back where I started!"

"You sure you started in Pallet Town?" Myst asked suspiciously. "How come I've never seen you before?"

"I'm from Cerulean City," he explained. "I just started in Pallet because my mom knows the Professor here."

"Hmmm," Misty said, sounding unconvinced.

"She's probably freaking out," the boy muttered, ignoring Myst's disbelieving appraisal of him. "How far are we from the nearest Pokémon Centre? I really need to call home."

"Viridian City," Myst said. "That's like a day and half form here. My grandma's house is just over that ridge if you want to use her phone. She can clean up your cuts and stuff too and fix you something to eat too."

"Thanks," the boys said sheepishly. "I might just take you up on that offer. My name's Ashley, by the way," he said, offering a hand. "And this is Buzz."

"Everyone just calls me Myst," she replied, taking his hand in hers. "And this here is Penny," she added, indicating the pichu seated on her shoulder.

"So what exactly happened to you?" Myst asked, turning and walking back to her grandmother's house.

"Well," Ashley sighed, "its all this little guy here's fault," he said, stroking his pichu as they walked and talked. "Staryu and I were on our way through the forest when we spotted him surrounded by a group of beedrill. Most of them were sleeping, but there were a couple of sentry's, which Staryu took out. We were getting Buzz out of there, but he was so happy that he started crying out, which woke the beedrill's.

"So we spent half a day being chased by the beedrill's who we eventually lost by jumping into a creek," he sighed exasperatedly, "although I think you can tell by the looks of me that I'm using creek in the loosest sense of the word. Of course, being in a creek we got attacked a muk, which we managed catch so I guess that's the silver lining. Of course we also spent almost a week recovering from his poison attack.

"Then we decided that the right thing to do was to return Buzz to his family seeing as he's only a baby, and we pretty much searched the entire forest and ran into almost every possible Pokémon that could want to attack us," he continued. "Eventually, as luck would have it, we came across the beedrills that started this whole thing, and just so you know, beedrills like to hold a grudge."

Myst nodded, fully engrossed in his tale. They were getting close to her grandmother's house and walking along the road towards it now. She briefly wondered whether her dad would still be there, or whether he had gone back to their house near the beach. She hoped the latter even though it made her feel guilty to think so – things always got complicated when people found out she was the daughter of _the_ Ash Ketchum.

"Long story short," Ash finished blandly, "Buzz and Staryu teamed up and took them all out by channelling Buzz's thunderbolt through a hydropump. And as you can see now, we are finally free of that infernal forest."

"That's so cool," Myst gushed. "You have to show me your staryu later. It sounds pretty powerful."

"It is," Ashley replied. "Staryu was my mum's favourite Pokémon and she gave it to me to start my journey. I think she just wanted Staryu with me to protect me when she wasn't around to do so herself."

"That's just like my dad," Myst laughed as she opened the gate and headed up the path leading to a red door. "I think he would have given me his pikachu if he could have bared to part with him. Instead I got Penny, which is one of his babies."

"So Penny is your starter?" Ashley asked, watching her as she knocked on the front door.

Myst nodded. "Today's my first day. I only left this place like an hour ago."

The pair of them jumped back as the door opened suddenly. "Mime?" the humanoid Pokémon asked curiously upon seeing Myst standing there. Myst scratched the back of her head sheepishly, just like her father, and Mimey rolled his eyes. He went to get Delia, rather than wait for Myst's explanation.

"Who is it Mimey?" Delia asked as she was pulled towards the door. Her eyes widened with surprise and then narrowed with concern upon seeing her granddaughter. "What are you doing back so soon dear?" she asked kindly.

"This is Ashley," Myst said, indicating to her new friend. "He needs to call his mum and tell her he's not dead. He's been stuck in the Viridian Forest for almost a month."

"Oh dear," Delia said, her hand going to her mouth. "Well you certainly can't go talk to your mother looking like that. You'll probably give her a heart attack. Why don't you go have a shower and I'll see if I have anything that might fit you?" she suggested to which Ashley nodded. "You're a lot taller than Myst's dad was at your age, but I'm sure I'll have something that will fit. Follow me, dear."

Ashley followed mutely as Delia showed him to the bathroom. Buzz jumped out of his arms as Penny jumped to the ground and the two began sniffing one another. Once they were satisfied with one another's sent, the two brushed their tails against one another as a sign of respect.

"You look like you could do with a clean almost as much as he does," Myst told Buzz, picking up Ashley's pichu in her arms and heading towards the kitchen. Penny followed jealously behind, whining a little as Myst placed Buzz on the kitchen bench and began to fill the sink with warm water.

"Do you want a bath too?" she asked Penny, picking her own pichu up and placing her next to Buzz. Penny nodded and to which Myst laughed. Grabbing her special soap (as pichu fur needs proper grooming) she placed the two Pokémon in the sink and began to wash them.

When she was done, she warned them to stay where they were as she went to get some towels to dry them properly. She tried to remember whether or not she had packed her grooming brush earlier that morning, or whether she had left it somewhere inexplicable.

When she returned the two seemed to be in the middle of some kind of water fight. Myst was glad to see that the Pokémon were fast friends and she considered the possibility of breeding in the future – Penny would clearly be sought after breeding stock given her lineage and wild Pokémon were always quite favourable in that respect. She decided to keep that thought to her self as she dried the pair.

* * *

Meanwhile . . .

Ashley found a pair of jeans laid out for him with a long black t-shirt. Delia was right about her son being shorter than him. He had to wear the jeans low to get them to reach the floor. He was also leaner than her son, and the shirt hung on him baggily. It made sense – at the same age Ash had been far from Ashley's height, and very fond of his food.

Delia told him there was a videophone in the front room where he had entered and to just head there whenever he was ready. Ashley didn't think he had ever met anybody as nice as Delia.

The phone only rang once before picking up.

"Ashley?" his mother asked hopefully as she appeared on screen.

"Yeah mum," he said. His mother seemed to visibly relax at the sight of him. "I'm sorry I didn't call. I was kind of lost."

Misty shook her head with a sigh. "I was hoping that you would get your dad's sense of direction," she said, smiling at her son. She was so happy to see him that she couldn't be mad at him not calling. "Where are you?" she asked.

"I'm back in Pallet," Ashley replied sheepishly. "I told you I was lost."

"As long as you're ok, that's what matters," Misty smiled.

"Ashley, dear, what would you like on your sandwich?" Delia asked as she came into the room.

"Delia," Misty gaped upon seeing her unofficial mother.

"Misty," Delia breathed happily as her eyes landed on the video screen. Tears filled her eyes.

"This is my new friends grandmother," Ashley said, introducing the pair and oblivious to the fact that they needed no introduction. "She was nice enough to let me use her phone and lend me some clothes."

"Ashley, do you mind if me and Delia talk for a few moments?" Misty asked her son, her eyes locked on Delia.

Delia smiled at him and told him he could help himself to anything in the kitchen. He nodded and left the adults to talk.

"Don't worry, he's not here," Delia said, noticing the frightened look on Misty's face. Misty sighed with relief. "So Ashley's your son? I should have known. He looks just like you now that I stop to think about it. He has your eyes, and the very look of a Waterflower."

Misty nodded slowly. "He gets that a lot," she said almost absentmindedly. "So . . . you're a grandmother? So, Ash is . . ."

"Divorced," Delia finished for her - she refrained from mentioning that he was also a widower, as it added nothing to the conversation. "There could never be anybody else for him, Misty. You have to believe me when I say that you're the only one he ever loved."

"Delia . . . I can't . . ." Misty said, her eyes filling with tears as she was flooded with memories. "Just tell Ash I love him . . . I mean . . . Ashley. Tell Ashley I love him."

"I will dear," Delia said kindly. "Don't worry about him. Myst will watch out for him – both of them."

"Good bye Delia," Misty sighed.

"Good bye Misty."

~ to be continued ~

Nice, got that first meeting out the way. This was supposed to be a chapter on Ash sending his daughter on his journey, but I read what I wrote and despite having a couple of touching moments in there, it was TERRIBLE! I tried to fix it, but it was beyond remedy so I decided it wasn't really necessary. This chapter on the other hand didn't need too much tweaking which means I must have written it more recently than the others.

I think my current source of inspiration might be coming up with a few OC's. I like name characters which is the main reason why Brock had so many kids in the epilogue of Sweet Home Pallet - he has almost as many here, and I'm pretty much using the same lot of children minus the tenth child who was only thrown in so I could make the joke about having his own little football team. In the midst of the OCing I came up with a few funny tidbits.

Like this:

_"Wow," Myst said, looking somewhat impressed by Arthur's (Slate) ability to recall almost the entire Waterflower family tree. "I didn't realize the gym leaders were so inbred."_

_"They aren't usually," Sapphie (Slate) laughed, elbowing Ashley in the ribs as she continued, "just when they concern Ashy's family."_

It is almost sordidly inbred given that in this formulation each of the Sensational Sisters are to be paired with a gym leader (VioletxSurge, LilyxKoga, DaisyxGary (replacing Giovanni in Viridian)) and they're children are probably intermingling with the remaining gym leaders and what not. I think Ashley should really consider a different profession given that there are four gyms that he probably isn't elligible to earn a badge from.

Anyways, review.


	5. Gone Fishing

**I'll Take the Tears**

Had some fresh inspiration for this one, so you get a chapter. Damn procrastination. Now I'm just wondering, if Myst was shipped with one of Brock's kids does that make it second generation bouldershipping (because she's Ash's) or second generation gymshipping (because she's a Misty-ish)?

Anyways . . .

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Pokemon. Don't own Shakespeare. Sort of own the plot which is becoming increasingly similar to the Parent Trap.

* * *

_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

_

* * *

  
_

I'll Take the Tears – Gone Fishing

Misty Waterflower sighed to her self, unable to pull herself away from the video screen long after the conversation was over. She knew that right now she should be thinking about her son and how glad she was that he was safe and well, but instead all she could think about was Ash.

He was married. Ash Ketchum was married, or at least, he had been. She wondered for how long and when it had happened and if he had been happy in his life. She wondered if they had many children, or just the one like her and Stephen. She wondered if he ever thought of her . . .

"Stop," Misty commanded herself aloud, forcing herself to at least turn her face away from the screen.

Instead she turned her thoughts to Delia Ketchum. The woman was exactly how Misty remembered her, warm and cheerful. There wasn't anyone in the world that was quite like Delia Ketchum and Misty had missed her dearly.

Delia had taken Misty in as an honorary daughter, and it pained both of them not to be in one another's lives. Delia had been on Misty's mind through all the important moments in her life along with Ash and Pikachu. They had been like family, constantly with her for five years, and then suddenly, they weren't even there to share in the most significant episodes. It had been a shock at the time, but seeing Delia again, even in video format, had brought it all back.

Delia hardly looked like she had even aged. She looked exactly the same even though Delia had been in her early thirties when they first met and was probably in her mid-fifties now. It was almost comforting to know that some things never changed even though everything else seemed to have move on so drastically.

She wondered what Ash's child was like. She couldn't help herself.

Was it a boy or a girl? Did the child have his eyes? Or did he or she inherit their mother's looks?

She guessed the child was probably following in their father's footsteps as a Pokémon trainer – she didn't know how any child of Ash Ketchum could consider any other profession. She wondered if she would recognise the child if he or she came to her gym; if she would be able to look at the child and say 'that there is the fruit of Ash Ketchum's loins, oh I knew him well'.

She wondered how she could be so jealous of a woman who wasn't even married to him anymore.

_'Stupid bitch,'_ Misty thought displeasingly to herself. _'Didn't even know how lucky she was.'_

And with that Misty let out dissatisfied sob.

When did things get so bad that she was sitting at home wishing she had the life of some woman who was married to Ash for no matter how brief a period of time? When did her own life – her own husband – stop being enough to bring her happiness?

When did she stop being happy?

* * *

"Soooo?" Myst drawled, looking at Ashley from across the table. The two pichu's sat in the middle of the table, happily sharing a bottle of ketchup. Delia Ketchum always had an abundant supply of ketchup on her for such occasions.

"Yes?" Ashley asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow in her direction, although he didn't look up from his lovingly prepared sandwich.

"Well I was just wondering whether you had like a plan or anything," Myst said with a shrug, trying her best to catch his eye. "Because, you know, if we were like heading in the same direction or something, then it might be cool for us to head there together," she finished lamely.

"I guess I'd be heading to Pewter," Ashley shrugged. "I mean, it's the first gym and I doubt that any of their Pokémon would be a match for mum's staryu."

"I think I'll be heading to Pewter too," she replied. "Although I still need to catch a water Pokémon. Even with Penny's breeding, there's no way she could defeat a rock Pokémon, especially if we're up against Onix.

"You wouldn't mind heading to a stream or something to see if we could catch something?" she asked hopefully.

"S'pose not," he replied nonchalantly.

Myst smiled widely. "Don't suppose you have a spare lure on you at all?"

* * *

"Be careful with it," Ashley said as he tentatively handed over his own personal 'Mighty Misty' lure. "It's practically one of a kind."

"I promise," Myst replied, rolling her eyes. "It's like a mini me," she laughed, copying the lure's victory pose.

"Only the hair," Ashley replied. "And only in certain lights. It's not like all redheads are interchangeable."

"That's what I tell my friend Saph," Myst laughed as she secured the lure to her rod. "She reckons I look like the baby version of her friend's mum, which I think is like the weirdest thing I've ever heard anyone say about their friends' parents. But she's always saying things like that."

"At least you'll always stand out in a crowd," Ashley suggested as he secured his own line. His mother had made him his own specialty lure that looked just like a pikachu. She didn't think much of his odds at catching anything with it, but that was fine with him as he already had a water Pokémon, so any additional ones were a bonus.

"Can't miss us redheads," she said, holding the lure by her head before tossing it and her line out into the stream. "Please not a magikarp," she begged quietly as she crossed her fingers.

Ashley laughed. "There's nothing wrong with magikarp. They turn into gyarados and if you've ever seen a gyarados in battle, you'd know that they are not one to mess with."

"You're right," Myst said with a determined nod. "Whatever I get will be awesome, regardless."

For a few moments they sat in silence, waiting for something to bite when something began to tug on Myst's line.

"I think I've got something," she cried happily as she tried to pull it in. With Ashley's help, the two pulled the Pokémon onto the riverbank, immediately reducing the effectiveness of any attack the Pokémon tired to attempt.

"Cool!" Myst cried. "It's a goldeen!"

"Penny, charm!" she called as she saw the goldeen readying itself for a tail whip. Penny's lovable charm stopped the goldeen in its tracks, giving Myst and Penny the chance to hit it before it hit them.

"Thunder shock, Penny!" Myst commanded. Penny gave her a quick determined nod before directing a powerful thunder shock against the fish. The thunder shock hit goldeen hard, and she was near faint. Myst threw her Pokéball, capturing the fish. The ball glowed for an instant, before resting peacefully on the riverbank.

"Yessss!" Myst cried joyfully as she picked up the Pokéball containing her newest team member and raised it proudly in the air. She and Penny danced happily around each other, celebrating their new team member.

Ashley looked impressed. "That goldeen will be an excellent addition to your team," he said simply.

"Definitely," Myst replied happily. "I can't wait to start training her. Out you come Gem," she called, as though to emphasise her point, releasing the goldeen back into the water.

Being back in her natural environment seemed to have an immediately positive effect on Gem. Myst smiled as she applied the healing potion and began to chat happily to her new Pokémon, commenting on how well she had battled and what a great team they were all going to be.

Ashley watched them for a moment. Myst reminded him of his mother in some ways and seeing her interact with a goldeen was making him feel a little homesick. He even missed his mother's cooking, even though the few occasions where she had tried to cook dinner had left him with a severe stomach ache. Unsurprisingly, the only thing she was any good at cooking was dessert.

"You know what," Myst mused aloud, turning her attention on Ashley. "You still haven't introduced me to Staryu. And while you're at it, I think I'd like to see your muk."

Ashley nodded as he released two Pokéball's. "Staryu! Oscar!" he called as the two balls cracked open.

Oscar was a pretty impressive looking muk. He was large, and Myst reckoned he was probably at a high level. But the thing that really captured her attention was Staryu. It was incredible.

Myst couldn't help herself. Her mouth dropped open in awe as she stared at the beautiful ruby gem and Staryu's golden armour. She awed at the obvious care that had been taken in raising the Pokémon, and even though Staryu wasn't even an evolved Pokémon, she could tell it was at an incredibly high level.

"Wow," she gaped unabashedly. "That's extraordinary."

Ashley nodded in agreement. "It was one of my mum's most powerful Pokémon."

"She must be an incredible trainer," Myst said decidedly.

"She is," Ashley agreed. He blushed knowing that he was sounding like a total 'momma's boy' as he considered whether or not to continue. He sighed, concluding that it would probably come up eventually. "My mother is the Cerulean City gym leader."

"Really?" she said, looking awed again. Myst knew that Cerulean was one of the toughest gyms around and a water based gym. It was the gym she was most excited about visiting.

"Can I tell you a secret?" she asked looking uncertain. She knew that admitting his relationship to Cerulean was letting her know something big, and feeling as though she could trust him, Myst decided that maybe she could tell Ashley a secret of her own.

"My dad," she began quietly, her voice timid. "I'm Ash Ketchum's daughter."

Ashley's eyes widened. "_The _Ash Ketchum?" he asked, taking on an expression that was now familiar to Myst. "As in World's Greatest Pokémon Master, Ash Ketchum? He's my hero!"

Myst looked sad. She guessed she had been wrong about Ashley and quickly covered it with a lie. "No silly," she laughed, trying to act naturally. "Ash Ketchum the celebrated developer of the most recent Pokédex upgrade. I don't know why everyone always thinks that when I tell them. I think dad would be heartbroken if he knew."

"Oh _that_ Ash Ketchum," Ashley replied trying to seem casual, as though he really did know who she was talking about. Like most people, he was not aware that there was more than one Ash Ketchum to be referred to. "He did a great job on the upgrade."

Myst forced a laugh. "C'mon," she suggested. "Time to head to Pewter. Last one there is a rotten eggecute."

~ to be continued ~

Awww, poor Mistys (sort of, cos I changed it to Mystique because I thought it was creepy). One of them is dissatisfied with life, and the other is trying to struggle out of her dad's shadow. This is of course an impossible task in Kanto but oh well, its not like I'm going to suddenly move the whole story to Johto or something. Damn inbreeding.


	6. Can't See the Forest for the Trees

**I'll Take the Tears**

I'm sure you're all surprised to see this, but I discovered that I had actually pre-written more chapters than I thought had. So here you go - a chapter. On the advice of Cyntalan, I'll date this update so you know how bad I am at updating. So this is coming to you 31 Dec 2009 - last day of the decade. Hope you like.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon. I own almost the entire second generation of trainers.

* * *

_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

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I'll Take the Tears – Can't See the Forest for the Trees

Ashley groaned as they stumbled through the trees. "I thought I made it clear that I never wanted to see another tree in my life," he complained, glaring at absolutely anything capable of being classified as fauna, including a wild oddish which Myst subsequently managed to catch (and name Wasabi for obvious reasons (A/N: because it looks like a radish and wasabi is known as Japanese horseradish)).

Myst just shook her head at him. "I told you the first time – as soon as you think of a faster way to get to Viridian we'll take it, but until then you'll just have to live with it," she replied with a smirk that reminded him of one of his uncles. "Now be quiet," she commanded. "Knowing your luck the sound of your whinging will probably attract some sort of Pokémon dead set on killing us."

"You know, you seemed a lot nicer back in Pallet," Ashely commented blandly, glaring at the back of her head rather than the trees for once. He was tempted to ask her if she was on her period and that was why she was so ratty, but knew better than to provoke females with that particular question. Especially when there was a good chance they were.

"Well you seemed much smarter in Pallet," Myst replied quickly, not even looking in his direction. "I'm starting to realize how you managed to get lost for so long. You do realize that the little arrow thingy at the top of the map means north, right?"

"I can read a map you know," Ashley argued back. "I just never worked out how to use a compass."

"You really are hopeless, Ashley," she laughed in response. "How you ever managed to get out of this forest in the first place is beyond me. Now hurry up, there's a river over this way we can stop by for lunch."

Ashley was silent as he followed her. He still wasn't really sure himself how he had managed to get out in the end. It was like one minute he was in the forest, and the next he quite conveniently wasn't and he had no clue about the schematics in between.

And even though Myst liked teasing the hell out of him, he was glad that she was with him. Not only had it completely sucked being lost for a whole month, it was actually really lonely. He was glad to have a friend, even if she was a big-mouthed girl who didn't seem like she would ever shut up. Maybe he'd just hang with her until BJ turned twelve – he was sure he could live with that.

Myst was pretty good with a map, and it wasn't long before the two of them were sitting by the river that she had indicated, eating sandwiches that Delia had prepared for them for their journey. Myst was back to fishing, hoping to collect another water Pokémon, but nothing seemed to be biting this time. She suspected she had just got lucky with Gem.

She sighed, packing up her fishing rod and giving Ashley back his lure for safe keeping. She briefly wondered if she might be able to convince Ashley's mother to make her a chibi lure of her own when they got to Cerulean – she'd even be willing to accept the lure in lieu of a cascade badge. After a quick check of the map she determined that they should head east for a while, and that should get them out nice and close to Viridian City.

However, before they could start making off in the right direction, a dramatic tune burst to life.

"Prepare for trouble," a young male voice demanded.

"And make it double," a young female added.

"To protect the world from devastation."

"To unite all people's within our nation."

"To denounce the evils of trust and love."

"To extend our reach to the stars above."

"Edmund," the young male said, stepping into sight.

"Callandria," the young female added, doing the same.

They each took on a dramatic pose, staring wildly upon their audience.

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light."

"Surrender now or prepare to fight."

"Meowth says dat wasn't quite roight," a pale feline commented, stepping into view and giving the pair a disappointed look.

"What was wrong with it that time?" the girl, Callandria, asked the feline running her fingers through her mid-length magenta hair as she pulled it to the side of her head.

"Yeah, it was perfect," the boy, Edmund, added, flicking his matching magenta locks dramatically.

"It's the timin'," the feline, Meowth presumably, told them both. "Yous just ain't got the dramatic timin'."

"Excuse me," Ashley said, interrupting the trio, "but what do you think you guys are doing? There hasn't been a Team Rocket in ages since they were disbanded by the Pokémon Master."

"We're practicing for a play," Callandria explained, her blue eyes narrowing at him. "What are you doing here? This is _our_ clearing."

"You're eight," Myst replied pointedly. "You couldn't possibly own a clearing."

Edmund looked annoyed by this. "We're nine and a half," he muttered sourly. "And we've been practicing our Team Rocket act here all week. That makes it our clearing, so just buzz off and find your own clearing."

"Fine, we were just about to leave anyway," Myst said snidely. "But don't think that has anything to do with you."

"Yeah well –" Edmund begun, but was cut off as a voice called out from the forest.

"Ned! Callie!" the voice called, getting closer by the second.

Edmund (Ned) and Callandria (Callie) seemed to pale at the sound of the voice. "Crap!" Edmund hissed at his sisters (as it was more than evident they were twins by their matching hair and eyes). "We can't let them know what we were doing out here."

"If they ask tell them we were helping you with your Pokémon," Callandria said quickly, turning to Ashley and Myst.

"If who ask?" Ashley asked at the precise moment that a lavender haired man and a strawberry haired woman stepped into their small clearing.

"There you two are," said the woman, looking at the two children. She let out a soft sigh of relief. "Your dad and I have been looking for you two everywhere. You know not to run off like that."

"I'm sorry mum," Edmund and Callandria mumbled simultaneous.

"Hi," the male said, turning to Ashley and Myst with a warm smile that seemed to spread all the way to his green eyes. "I'm Ned and Callie's dad, James, and this is Jesse, their mum. We hope they haven't been bothering you guys too much."

"No it's fine," Myst said sweetly.

Jesse turned to look at the pair of trainers standing together, her eyes narrowed as she took them in. "You two look very familiar," she mused, gazing at them with an almost dreamy expression. "James, don't you think they look like the twerps."

"Hmmm," James said, eyeing them with an expression similar to Jesse. "Very much so," he said, gesturing towards Myst. "Look at that, she's got her hair and his eyes."

"What's your name kid?" Meowth asked, interjecting.

"Uh . . . Myst Ketchum?" Myst asked, feeling stupid for seemingly questioning her own name.

"They are the twerps kids," James almost squealed enthusiastically.

"No were not-" Ashley interjected trying to explain to Jesse and James that they had the wrong idea, and that he and Myst weren't even related. The pair just gave them an incredulous look in response.

"Really? Whose your mother kid?" Jesse asked, misinterpreting Ashley's protest.

"Misty Waterflower," Ashley replied, confused by the relevance of the question.

Myst's eyes widened at the name. Wasn't Misty Waterflower the name of the girl from her dad's picture? So Ashley's mother might be her dad's long lost friend (and love of his life according to her grandmother) – that was certainly a strange coincidence.

"Dat's the twerpette a'roight," Meowth nodded.

"No you don't understand," Ashley protested. "We're not related," he explained, gesturing to himself and Misty.

"Wait," Jesse said, her eyes narrowing in confusion. "So your father is Ash Ketchum?" she asked, gesturing at Myst who nodded. "And your mother is Misty Waterflower?" she asked Ashley, who also nodded. "But you're not related to each other?" Both of them nodded.

"As in Misty Waterflower the Cerulean City gym leader?" she asked to clarify, receiving another nod from Ashley. Jesse just couldn't seem to wrap her head around the fact that what stood before her were Ash and Misty's unrelated offspring's. "And Ash Ketchum, the Pokémon Master?"

"No the other Ash Ketchum," Ashley answered for Myst, glad that someone else had been caught by that one.

"I hate to break it to ya kid," Meowth cut in, "but ders only one Ash Ketchum and she's def'nitely his doighter."

Myst looked down the ground guiltily as she felt Ashley's wide eyes upon her. She knew that lie was going to end up coming back to haunt her in the end, but she hoped to postpone the inevitable for as long as possible.

Jesse watched the actions carefully and shook her head. "I think we've reaped enough havoc here today," she sighed, trying to send Myst an apologetic smile. She moved close to the young girl and reassuringly squeezed her hand.

"I can understand you wanting to keep your dad's infamy to yourself," she said softly, her voice low so that Ashley couldn't hear her, "but you can't hide it forever, especially when you two get to Cerulean. Your friend's mum will know the second she sees you, and the sooner it's out in the open the better."

Myst just nodded, still looking at the ground.

"Come on you rascals," Jesse told her children. "Your sister is home from school today –"

Callandria cut her off excitedly, eyes going wide. "Sandy's back?" she asked excitedly. "She said she wouldn't be back 'til next week."

James laughed, ushering the children out of the clearing. "I think Cassandra was teasing you, Callie," he told her with a smile as they left.

Jesse sent them each one last smile as she waved bye. "Tell your folks we said 'hi'," she instructed them. "And tell them we're sorry things didn't work out."

Myst finally looked up at the cryptic message. When she did so, she met Ashley's harsh glare – something any outside observer would recognise as being learnt from his mother.

"I'm sorry I lied to you," she said with a frown. "I just sort of panicked when you started going on about how he was your hero and stuff."

"Your dad's kind of a big deal, Myst," he replied, still looking at her coolly. "It's how most people are going to react to the sound of his name."

"Yeah, well it sucks," Myst answered him, crossing her arms protectively over her chest and diverting her gaze. "Do you know how hard it is to find out your friends are more interested in your father than you? Everyone was always so nice to me, and I loved having so many friends until I found out that the only reason they wanted to come over to my house and hang out with me was because they were hoping to score an autograph from my dad."

"You think I don't understand that?" Ashley asked. "I've had tonnes of kids try to be my friend just so I would convince my mum to go easy on them when they come to battle."

"It's not the same," she argued. "Your mum is one of twelve gym leaders in Kanto, and like one of a hundred globally. My dad is _the _Pokémon Master. The _only _Pokémon Master. Hardly anyone knows all the gym leaders by name, but _everyone_ knows who Ash Ketchum is."

Ashley just shook his head disappointedly. "Let's just get out of this blasted forest and then we can go our separate ways," he suggested, moving in the direction they were heading before Callandria and Edmund's performance.

Myst shook her head. This was the last thing she wanted. "Ashley, the reason I didn't tell you is because I wanted us to be friends," she admitted helplessly. "I wanted to finally have a friend of my own who didn't know about my dad. Someone who liked me for me."

Ashley turned back to face her, letting out a soft sigh. He could see from her face that she was being sincere.

"Alright," he sighed, "but on one condition."

"What?" she asked hopefully.

"That you never mention my getting lost ever again," he commanded.

"Deal," Myst agreed, offering her hand. Ashley accepted it, giving it a brisk shake.

"Just one thing though, Ashley," she said with a slight grimace and she forced him to turn around. "Viridian City is _that_ way."

~ to be continued ~

Ashley's scarily bad sense of direction amuses me - oh if Ash knew he could feel so justified with regards to Misty always telling him that she got them lost.

Now to show my clever naming for the rocket kids - there's Ned Kelly of course for the twins and the older child Cassandra Jane or rather Calamity Jane. I just like naming things.

Things have gone off from a very different tangent than what I originally intended. Next chapter is back with the original Ash and Misty and you should start to see the hints of where this story is going appearing.


	7. Memories and Regrets

**I'll Take the Tears**

Ack! I seriously meant to update this sooner. Honestly I did. I meant to leave it no more than a month and now it's half way through April. Bad me. But I will update quicker, mostly because I don't think you get much from this chapter, so I'll post the next chapter in a couple of days. Hmmm . . . I'm thinking someday soon I'm gonna have to revise this whole story for coherency, largely because of all the changes it goes through in purpose. It started off as an AshleyxMyst romance, but is back to AshxMisty, with a side of BrockxSabrina (cos I can't help myself), VioletxSurge (cos that one amuses me), LilyxAndrew (who is an OC so unimportant) and DaisyxGary (for the sole purpose of having a ship I can call 'NotMySisterShipping' - alternatively, you could call GaryxMay that, but apparently it never occurred to anyone).

But yeah, this is a monologue chapter - apologies for that. I'm sure there is something important in it, but can't remember what.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon. I own various characters that I made up. Like Ashley, Myst, Stephen, Andrew, Sapphie, Arthur, Malachi, Robinson, Ethan, Guinea, BJ . . . if you hadn't noticed, a disproportionate number of the characters I had to make up are Brock's offspring - he has a very large family but at least we know he can handle it . . .

* * *

_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

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I'll Take the Tears – Memories and Regrets

Stephen and Misty sat in silence as they ate the meal set out before them. After a long day at the gym, she had opted for takeaways rather than risk poisoning her own husband. The league season was now at its peak, which meant she could see as many as fifteen opponents a day and have to file the paper work for each and every one of them. She was starting to understand why many of the other gym leaders had so many underlings.

For Misty there was no one else to share in her burden, and to be perfectly honest, she liked it that way. It kept her mind occupied, which was good.

Occasionally her sisters would come to visit and help, and of late her eldest nephew, Robinson, had been coming to help her out with tending to the Pokémon – perhaps to his fathers disdain. Misty couldn't imagine Mathis being too happy with his first born choosing his mother's water lineage over the electric gym, especially given that the twenty year old had more interest in tending to Pokémon than battling them. Robinson had clearly taken after his mother – Violet always had too much of a romantic nature to take battling serious, and Robinson seemed to emulate this ten fold.

If Robinson was like his mother, then Ethan was Mathis' son through and through. Ethan was _much_ more like his father – he was enrolled in a military academy and would probably enlist in the Special Forces just like his father when he graduated in the spring. Ethan and Robinson were as different as two people could possibly be, just like Violet and Mathis who seemed to be opposites in every possible way. They seemed to embody the old saying that 'opposites attract' because in spite of all there differences, the attraction between the two was plainly obvious to everyone around them.

Looking across the table, Misty thought about how different her own marriage was from that of Violet and Lt. Mathis Surge. As strange a pairing as the two obviously were, no one could ever question the love they held for one another. Their differences seemed to compliment each other in the strangest ways. Violet described him as her anchor – he was so grounded, and the one thing that could bring her back to earth when she was lost in one of her flights of fancy.

In some ways, Misty and Stephen were very alike. They shared the same views on politics, the same ideals, and the same taste in books and movies and the like. They were both hard workers and independent. They were both interested in Pokémon, although in different ways – Stephen was more interested in the ways Pokémon might be beneficial to humans and studied the secretions of various Pokémon for medicinal properties, where as Misty's interest was more personal. They both cared a lot for other people.

But they were different too. Misty tended to make decisions with her heart rather than her head making her impulsive at times, where as Stephen was always very scientific and methodological in his decision making process. He was always very cool and controlled, where as Misty had always been tempestuous to say the least. She was outgoing and easily excitable in some ways, where as he was restrained and introverted.

They were as different, she supposed, as Violet and Mathis, but sometimes Misty felt as though instead of complimenting her personality, Stephen's differences were holding her back. As though he were somehow stifling the most important parts of her.

Misty shook her head, trying to dismiss the idea. It was a terrible thought to have, but it was something that had been playing upon her mind ever since her incredibly brief chat with Delia.

To be perfectly honest, she had always been envious of the relationships she saw around her. Her sisters' marriages and those of her friends seemed so much different than her own, and she always felt as though she and Stephen were somehow lacking.

For Violet and Mathis, it was their incredible compatibility that made her insides squirm. Each of them was so unique and different from one another, but they made each other better for it. They shined brighter together than apart, where as Misty's star had been fading for the last twenty years.

For Lily and Andrew her jealousy was centered on the quiet understanding between the two. Nobody knew Lily quite like the Captain did and vice versa – all he needed to do was take one look at his wife to know exactly what she was feeling. The words 'how are you?' or 'are you ok?' never needed to be passed between them because they always knew the answer, and no matter how far they were from each other they always knew when the other was in any sort of pain.

The pair was remarkably close – as though they were best friends as well as husband and wife. Sometimes Misty felt as though she and Stephen were strangers – there was so much she was keeping from him, almost a decade of her life that he knew nothing about. She was grateful that Stephen couldn't read her the way that Andrew so easily understood Lily, because there was so much that she couldn't tell him, things that would only hurt him if he knew the truth.

For Gary and Daisy, perhaps the most unlikely pair, the green-eyed monster had pounced upon their playfulness. It had taken everyone a good couple of hours to actually realize they were serious when they announced that they had eloped in the Orange Islands. Even after fifteen years of marriage the two flirted constantly and teased one another endlessly. Misty had rarely seen her eldest sister without a smile on her face since she had started seeing Gary Oak all those years ago. Even when she was sad, it wasn't long before he found a way to make her smile again almost despite herself.

She suspected that Gary and Daisy affected her more than her younger sisters for one simple reason: Gary was a lot like Ash. It was strange to see Ash's cheekiness alongside Gary's cockiness in the same person, but it was there all the same. The two had pretty much been raised together by Delia and Professor Oak, so it shouldn't have been so much of a surprise to find them so alike. Sometimes Gary and Daisy would remind her of herself and Ash, and she'd be torn between smiling and crying.

She missed having that sort of relationship. She missed fighting with her best friend over absolutely nothing. She missed her best friend, and Gary seemed to be the most prominent reminder of that fact.

But even with Gary's likeness to Ash, the envy she felt towards them didn't even come close to that which she felt for Sabrina and Brock.

Sabrina and Brock had the one thing that Misty and Stephen's relationship was lacking, and they had it in abundance: Passion. Everyday it was like the two fell in love all over again. They constantly needed to be near each other, even when they were at each other's throats. Brock couldn't enter a room without searching for his wife's presence and finding a way to hold her hand or caress her face.

Misty glanced across the table and watched her husband enjoy his meal – his eyes flitting between the vegetable curry and a journal article that sat beside him. She loved her husband; she knew that much was true. He had brought happiness into her life and had supported her as a husband should. But was she _in love_ with him?

Had she ever been in love with him? That was perhaps the more crucial question.

They had found themselves comfortable in one another's presence, and that had seemed to suffice both of them at the time. Stephen was a scientist first and foremost, and he wasn't looking for love and neither was she really. She had found it so long ago that to renew the search made her heart ache dully – it would accept no alternative. What she had with Stephen was amiable companionship, not romantic love, and for a while that had been enough.

And then suddenly it wasn't. Suddenly she wanted something more, something that she wasn't sure Stephen could give. Something she wasn't even sure she wanted from him . . .

Her talk with Delia had seemed to bring it all streaming back.

The interaction had somehow made Ash real for her again, bringing all thoughts of him back to the surface. For years, in stolen moments, she had cried for the boy she lost, but now her thoughts were consumed with something else – the man he had surely become.

It was one of the reasons that she was struggling with her paper work. Her mind kept slipping on its own accord, wondering what he was like now and what he looked like. She had seen pictures, but had never allowed herself to study them at any great length, usually turning the page quickly so as to quell the urge.

She'd bet he was handsome, but knew she probably wouldn't care either way. At sixteen he had been cute, but there was something in his eyes that told her he would be breaking hearts in the future. How was she to know that hers would be the first casualty?

Stephen eventually looked up, feeling her eyes upon him. He offered her a brief smile before returning to his perusal of a colleagues work.

"Robbie's doing well at the gym," she offered, trying to start conversation with her husband. He offered a mumbled sign that he was attending to her, and she continued with a soft sigh. "He's so good with the Pokémon. I might talk to Brock to see if he could spend some time with him in Saffron. He'd make an excellent breeder."

Stephen nodded as he spooned some rice and curry into his mouth, his eyes not lifting from the page. Misty grimaced. She hated that Stephen was vegetarian. At least with Ashley around, she could justify having meat in the house, but with just the two of them it was back to lentils and mung beans. One of the best parts of being pregnant had been Ashley's supposed cravings for Big Macs.

"I feel like it's been ages since I've seen Brock," she continued, feeling the need to fill the silence. "Not to mention my goddaughter and godson," she said with an awkward giggle.

"Maybe we can stop by Saffron on the way to Cinnabar Island," Stephen suggested abruptly, shuffling his papers to indicate that he would rather concentrate on the material.

"What's this about Cinnabar?" she asked, her eyes narrowing in confusion.

Stephen sighed, looking up to meet her eye. "We were just talking about this yesterday Misty," he sighed. "The conference on bug types. I wasn't going to go remember, but they've had a cancellation and they've asked me to give a lecture next week."

"Stephen, it's peak trainer's season," Misty explained lowly. "I can't drop everything and close the gym for some conference."

"I'm sure Robinson can look after the gym," Stephen replied, looking back down at his research. "Didn't you just say how good he was with the Pokémon?"

"Yes, at _caring_ for the Pokémon," she stressed. "He hasn't trained with them. He doesn't know their attacks. The only battles that Robinson has conducted have been using electric Pokémon. There's kind of a big difference between Surge's raichu and Gyarados."

"Well then ask one of your sisters to come mind the gym," Stephen suggested with another rustle of his pages. "As much as you hate to admit it, they've got the experience."

"I'm not going to drag one of my sisters away from their families with less than a weeks notice," Misty growled back. "Vi hates battling. Lily's got the party to try and plan for next month. And Daisy is already busy looking after the Viridian Gym while Gary visits his grandfather. Any other suggestions?"

"Fine I'll go by myself," Stephen replied promptly. "Seeing as it's just me, I suppose I can head out early and get a real look at this thing."

"I suppose so," Misty said stiffly as she removed herself from the table.

She couldn't believe that Stephen could be so inconsiderate. He had all the care in the world for greater humanity, but not for those closest to him. How he could ever think that she would want to be at a bug conference was beyond her, but to think she could just pass her duties onto her sisters when they had their own lives to worry about?

Misty sighed again. Her husband was a mystery to her at times, and she to him. He didn't really know her. He could never really know her, and that was as much her fault as his.

But no one would ever know that.

* * *

Ash smiled at the camera as he shook the hand of the challenger he had just defeated. Pikachu perched happily on his shoulder, hamming it up for the camera's as the electric rodent often did. Pikachu sure did love the limelight.

The Johto championship runner-up smiled weakly as Ash offered him words of encouragement. There had been some tough competition out there this year, and the kid had given him a run for his money; but in the end his competitor's ariados was outclassed by Pikachu and the win went to the reigning champion.

(A/N: you do not know how much pleasure I take in having the spider zapped like this)

It was not an unexpected outcome. Ash had held the title for almost twenty years now, and there was no way he would be giving it up that easily.

His smile almost failed as a morose thought came to mind. Misty hadn't been there to see him win the Johto league even though they had started the journey together, and the win had seemed somehow less satisfying by her absence.

He was painfully aware of her absence for pretty much all of the time. Every moment of joy sparked the painful reminder that she should have been there and that he was the reason she wasn't.

His love lost because of some innocuous comment. His best friend out of his life all because of some argument started by a _stupid bike!_

He didn't even remember what the argument itself was about anymore or how it had gotten to that point. All he remembered was the way she looked at him with sad eyes as though he had disappointed her in the worst possible way.

And that was the one thing that kept him going. He needed to prove himself to her . . .

. . . even if she would never know it.

~ to be continued ~

Ashley's scarily bad sense of direction amuses me - oh if Ash knew he could feel so justified with regards to Misty always telling him that she got them lost.

Now to show my clever naming for the rocket kids - there's Ned Kelly of course for the twins and the older child Cassandra Jane or rather Calamity Jane. I just like naming things.

Things have gone off from a very different tangent than what I originally intended. Next chapter is back with the original Ash and Misty and you should start to see the hints of where this story is going appearing.


	8. Still Rock'n'Roll To Me

**I'll Take the Tears**

See, I told you I would actually do this one quickly. Wasn't lying that time.

I've made some slight changes to the earlier chapters, mostly by dropping Ashley and Myst's ages back to ten (as they should be, they were only 12 because it was supposed to be a romance between them) and a slight change to Ash's marital status. Myst's mum isn't the woman who left Ash early on - that's his second wife. I think that's about it, other than dropping the Shakespeare. I'm still a bit unhappy with the beginnings of this, but I feel a bit better after that.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything worth owning, 'cept for my laptop, but you can't have that 'cos it's mine and I really like it.

* * *

_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

_

* * *

  
_

I'll Take the Tears – Still Rock'n'Roll To Me

"We're free! Free I tell you!" Ashley cried dramatically as they stepped out of the forest, taking in large gasps of air as though he had been starved of oxygen for days.

Myst rolled her eyes at her friend and shook her head. "Seriously, Ashley," she said drolly. "Stop being such a drama queen. We were only in the forest for a week this time, and we would have been out sooner if you hadn't insisted on putting your map reading skills to the test."

Ashley pouted and Myst continued. "By the way, you are _never_ allowed near a map ever again!"

"I said I was sorry," Ashley argued back, pulling the pichu on his shoulder into his arms.

"And I told you at the time that I didn't have the energy to yell at you then, but you'd be in for it once we got to Pewter," Myst responded smartly. "And look at that – we be in Pewter so now I'm going to yell at you, and then I'm going to take my Pokémon to Nurse Joy, and then after that I'm going to go win myself a boulder badge!"

"Fine," he sighed, his shoulders slumping slightly. "Let's get this over and done with."

"Not in the mood now. It's no fun if you're just going accept it like that," she shrugged. "Come on, let's get to the Pokémon centre."

And so the two made their way to the Pewter City Pokémon centre. The two were shocked to find a ridiculously long line leading all the way outside and around the corner from the centre.

"Do you have any idea what's happening?" they asked a blonde girl who stood in front of them.

The girl shook her head. "Someone came out and said there was a guy talking to Nurse Joy, but I'm not really sure what that has to do with anything."

Myst and Ashley shared a look. "Oh great," Myst muttered painfully.

"You don't think . . .?" Ashley asked, wincing at the thought.

"It's gotta be," Myst replied. "What else could make a line this long? In Pewter of all places."

"Mal?" Ashley asked with a sigh.

Myst shook her head. "He's learning the family trade. My money's on Art."

"I still say Mal," Ashley countered. "He could be visiting."

"Wanna make it interesting?" Myst asked, raising her eyebrow shrewdly at her friend.

"Loser does the others share for a week?" he suggested in return, holding out his hand as he announced his proposition.

"Deal," Myst replied, shaking his hand. "Let's go fix this."

Apologizing the entire way, Myst and Ashley eventually made their way inside the Pokémon centre. Myst smiled at the sight that befell them.

A tall boy of about fourteen years with tan skin, dark eyes and spiky jade/black hair stood at the front desk holding Nurse Joy's hand in his own. The Nurse's expression seemed half-way between a blush and a cringe as the boy spurted some of the corniest pick up lines known to man.

"Oh Nurse Joy, I'm always so glad you're around. I'm in great pain Nurse Joy," the boy exclaimed, "I need urgent medical treatment!"

"Um . . . I only treat Pokémon," the young nurse replied awkwardly, trying her best to retrieve her hand from the teen.

"But Nurse Joy, I skinned my knee falling for you!" he cried.

Nurse Joy sweat dropped nervously.

Myst and Ashley shook their heads at the sight. "You ready?" Ashley asked her to which he received a nod from Myst.

"Penny/Buzz," they called simultaneously, "discharge."

And with that the boy was hit by a pair of electrical attacks.

"We're so sorry for our friend Nurse Joy," Myst apologized as Ashley pulled the boy away. "Arthur just hasn't been himself lately," she lied.

The nurse gave her an incredulous look that told Myst that Joy knew she was lying. "It's ok, dear," Nurse Joy smiled at her. "My family have been in Pewter for many years now, so I knew his father and his uncles and his older brother, not to mention his grand father, and I'll probably get to know his cousins and the rest of his family eventually.

"Do you have any Pokémon that need healing?" the nurse asked, allowing Myst and Ashley to cut given that they had just done her one hell of a favour.

"Yes, thank you," Myst said, handing over her Pokéballs and Penny, and gesturing for Ashley to come over and do the same.

"All right," Nurse Joy smiled as she quickly healed their Pokémon. "You guys have a nice day."

"Thanks Nurse Joy," Myst and Ashley smiled back. "See you later."

"Bye my love," Arthur cried as he was forcibly removed from the Pokémon centre.

"I win," Myst said proudly.

"Who would have guessed that Arthur would be twice as bad as Malachi?" Ashley sighed.

"So what are you doing in Pewter?" he asked, turning to face Arthur. "I thought you had all your badges."

Arthur nodded, becoming serious now that he was away from his beloved. "I'm just stopping by to see Uncle Forrest," Arthur told him. "I've been training around Mt. Moon for the past month and thought I'd come back this way to see Forrest, and then I was going to come see you in Pallet," he finished, glancing at Myst. "Maybe ask your dad for a few pointers."

"Guess it's a good thing you met us then," Myst told him. "Dad's supposed to be going to some conference on something on some island somewhere – the details aren't that important. The point is, he's not home right now. Although I'm sure Nana would have been happy to see you."

"Just my luck," Arthur sighed, shaking his head in disappointment. "Where are you two off to? Actually, never mind, I have a better question. Since when did you two know each other?" he asked pointedly. Some would even go so far as to suggest that his tone was jealous.

"Long story," Ashley sighed painfully.

"I'm in no rush," Arthur replied.

"But we are," Myst answered. "How about we tell you on the way to the gym? Me and Ashley have to battle Forrest for the boulder badge."

"Right this way then, mademoiselle," Arthur said, winking at Myst as he took the lead.

It was a short walk from the Pokémon centre to the Pewter City gym, and those aware of the lecherous ways of the Slate men suspected that the gym's owners wouldn't have it any other way. When they walked into the gym, it was dark and almost hauntingly quiet. Even Arthur who visited the gym quite regularly seemed surprised by the atmosphere.

_"Who enters?"_ a voice asked darkly.

"Forrest?" Myst asked. She stood stiffly and cast her face with a look of determination that her father would have been proud of. "I challenge you to a gym battle."

_"Who enters?"_ the voice asked again.

"Um . . . Mystique Ketchum of Pallet Town," Myst replied less surely.

_"Mini Misty?"_ the voice asked. The tone changed from dark and sombre, to suddenly strangely perky and undeniably feminine. _"Is that you?"_

"How do you . . .?" Myst began, surprised to hear the dreaded nickname. Only her uncles (of which she had three – none of which she was related to biologically) dared to call her 'Mini Misty', and she was pretty sure the name was meant as a tease to her father given the way they laughed as they said it. "Saph?"

A figure stepped out of the shadows and moved quickly towards them. She was younger than Arthur, but older than Ashley and had lightly tanned skin and jade/black hair like Arthur's. However, instead of Arthur's dark, narrowed eyes, she had the brilliant blue eyes along with her long straight tresses - Sapphire Slate was practically the image of her mother.

"Sapphie!" Myst cried gleefully as she grabbed her best friend in a hug. She was almost the exact opposite of Sapphire – her shoulder length, messy fly away red hair and tomboyish attire contrasted with Sapphire's tidy ensemble and prim exterior, but the two were as close as two people could be.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I've been helping Uncle Forrest out in the gym," Sapphire replied as she returned the hug. "He's just gone out to get his Pokémon healed, but he should be back soon. I mean, he's been gone for almost an hour now."

Arthur had the decency to look sheepish at this.

"I thought you were helping Mum and Guinea at the other gym?" he asked his little sister, giving her a concerned look.

Sapphire shrugged. "All that psychic stuff was too much hassle, so I thought I'd come check out how Dad's side did things," she answered flippantly. "Although I think I might go back home. Uncle Forrest's Pokémon are all so ugly," she added, screwing up her nose delicately at the thought.

"Well, yeah," Arthur replied sarcastically. "They're rock types. It doesn't exactly lend itself to aesthetics."

"That reminds me," Sapphire said suddenly, her mood ever changing. "Present from Dad," she told him as she handed him a Pokéball.

Arthur tossed the Pokéball and released the creature within. The three trainers (Ashley, Myst and Arthur) looked impressed at the large rock snake that materialized before them, where as Sapphire looked uninterested and instead gave her attention to Myst's pichu who she reckoned was positively adorable.

"Wow," Ashley gaped as he reached automatically for his Pokédex. "That thing is awesome."

Dexter seemed to agree: _"Onix: the rock snake Pokémon. Onix can grow up to 28 feet in length and can tunnel through the ground at almost 50 miles per hour. The segments of an Onix's body are one of the most impenetrable substances known to man."_

"Dad and Mal must have finally gotten around to breeding Steelix. I can't believe he sent me a hatchling," Arthur babbled excitedly. "I thought he promised you next litter."

"Yeah, but that was when I thought he was breeding something cute like mudkip," Sapphire replied.

"Speaking of cute," Myst cut in, "you promised you'd show me your Pokémon from Johto."

"I did, didn't I," Sapphire smiled. "These guys are soooo adorable. Come out guys!"

Sapphire tossed out three Pokéballs revealing a corsola, a totodile and a chikorita. "This is Cassie, Alistair and Halstead," she said, pointing to them each in turn. "Cute right? Wait 'til I show you what they can do. Harry, Ali, Cas! You guys know what to do!"

Each of the Pokémon sent out an attack. Alistair (totodile) sent out a carefully controlled blizzard attack that swirled artfully in an elegant arc. Halstead (chikorita) in turn began using magical leaf, which intertwined with the ice attack, sparkling between the intricate snowflakes. Cassie (corsola) contributed a bubble attack to the show, capturing each individual leaf and being compelled upwards by the force Alistair's blizzard which was quickly acquiring a funnel shape. Once they reached the top of the ice attack, the bubble spread freely through out the room, eventually dissipating as the three Pokémon ceased their attacks.

The three trainers applauded the show.

"We were just messing around in training, and the attacks accidentally got combined," Sapphire explained with a proud smile.

"Very cool!" Myst replied, applauding her best friend. "It was even better than the Grand Festival!"

"Grand Festival?" Sapphire asked curiously.

"The coordinator competition," Arthur explained.

"Coordinators? I saw some of them in Johto, it was pretty cool," she mused in response. "I didn't realize that there was a festival in Kanto. Hmm.

"Anyway," she finished, her mood changing once again. "Do you guys want something to eat while we wait for uncle to get back? I think I've got some riceballs."

They nodded and followed her into the gym's living quarters.

"What is it with Dad and riceballs?" Arthur asked with a shake of his head as he chewed on the snack. "Whenever I stop by a Pokémon centre there seems to be a box of them waiting for me."

"So that's who those were from," Ashley deduced as he popped a riceball into his own mouth. "There was a box waiting for each of us when we got to Viridian. Although mine were off by the time I got there."

"Your dad is weird," Myst told the Slate children seriously.

"So is yours, Chibi," Arthur replied, tugging at her hair. She scowled at him, and he just laughed. "But not as weird as Ashley's mum."

Ashley laughed in response. "You know what I just realized?" he asked them all. The girls asked 'what' in return where as Arthur just raised an eyebrow in his direction. "You know how you said back at the river that your friend reckoned you looked like someone, I just realized that the someone is my mum. That's why Sapphie called you 'Mini Misty'."

"It's better than 'chibi'," Myst said, looking pointedly at Arthur. No matter how many times she glared at him, he continued to laugh in response. It was actually rather infuriating.

The four of them stayed in the living quarters for an hour or so, sharing stories about their various travels. Sapphire had begun a journey in Johto, but came back to Kanto when she realized she didn't much like training. The battling and the like was fine (she clearly didn't have her dad's problem in that regard) but it just got a bit mundane at times seeing the same sort of moves over and over again, and working towards an impossible goal. Running the gym had been sort of fun because it allowed her to develop different skills, but she wasn't really interested in either side of her lineage. She wondered if it would be too weird to start a gym specializing in 'cute' Pokémon.

Arthur was in his second year of training. He entered the Indigo Championship a couple of years and got into the Top 32. He was now trying for a second attempt, working extra hard with is Pokémon in getting them into top condition now that he had all his badges. He knew he could do much better this year.

Since meeting the Rocket Twins in the forest, Ashley and Myst had picked up a couple of extra Pokémon. Myst had caught a poliwag and a pidgey between Viridian and Pewter. Ashley now had an ekans, which pichu had accidentally electrocuted and Ashley thus felt obliged to capture, as well as a venonat that had decided to follow him for some strange reason, thus again making Ashley obliged to add it to his team. Of the five Pokémon that Ashley had obtained, only one of these had been properly captured.

"Where the hell is uncle?" Sapphire asked loudly after almost two hours had passed since their arrival. "Artie, please tell me you didn't just come from the Pokémon centre?" she begged her brother.

"Ok, I won't tell you," he said before turning to Myst. "Chibi, do you mind telling my sister that I just came from the Pokémon centre. Apparently she doesn't want to hear it from me."

"You're awful, Arthur," Misty told him, scowling at the nickname. Her hands were positioned on her hips and a dangerous look on her face, which Arthur just laughed at as he always did.

Sapphire shook her head at her brother's antics. It was one thing to flirt with Nurse Joy (it was practically a rite of passage or coming of age for the Slate men) and even the triplets to some extent, but shouldn't her best friend be off limits? Part of her suspected that Arthur's proposed visit to see Ash in Pallet Town was probably just an excuse to see her redheaded best friend. Knowing her brother, he was probably busy scheming away as to how to invite himself along on Ashley and Myst's journey.

"Who knows how long he'll be there for now," Sapphire sighed, shaking her head. It was getting suspiciously close to Nurse Joy's dinner break, and chances were that her surprisingly charming uncle had probably convinced the nurse to take an early one and join him for dinner. They'd be lucky if they saw him again before tomorrow morning.

"That's it," she said decidedly. "Seeing as this is your fault Arthur, you have to battle these guys for the boulder badge."

"What?" Arthur asked. "Aren't you the one whose learning how to run this place? Shouldn't you be battling them?"

"I would, but Uncle Forrest took all his Pokémon with him," she told him. "Corsola's my only rock-type. I need at least two for it to count. Come on Arthur, you're a registered gym leader," she whined.

"To another gym, and only because Guinea needed a sub," he argued back.

"Doesn't matter," she argued back. "You just need permission from someone registered to the gym, and I just happen to be registered, and I just happen to give you permission. Nothing to worry yourself over, brother."

Arthur was struck speechless for a moment before turning to face Myst and Ashley. "I'm sure you guys would much rather wait for Forrest to get here," he said slowly, his voice almost pleading.

"I'll battle you," Myst said excitedly, not catching on to his pleading tone. "Who have you got with you?"

Arthur looked thoughtful, considering his six Pokémon (seven including his newly acquired onix). By a fortunate (or unfortunate) coincidence, he did happen to have two rock types on him. The other four were grass, dark, ghost and psychic, and as much as he wanted to take the strategic choice and throw Haunter into the ring, it would be unfair to round it off with the ghost type.

"Reaper, Gravedigger and Wario," he replied after careful consideration.

"All settled then," Sapphire smiled, happy with her choice. She quickly began leading them all back to the gym arena and they began readying themselves for battle.

"This is a three on three battle," she said, explaining the conditions. "Only the challenger may substitute – that means Myst, Arthur, not you. Begin."

"Go Gravedigger," Arthur called, releasing a graveler onto the field.

"Myst chooses . . ." Myst began, pausing thoughtfully to consider her options. "Myst chooses Levi," she called releasing her poliwag onto the field.

The size difference between the two creatures was astounding, but Levi tried not to look daunted by the large rock creature. It wasn't exactly an even match, but poliwag had the type advantage, so that had to mean something.

Arthur called for Gravedigger to use **tackle**, and Myst responded by calling for Levi to use **dig** in order to dodge. She knew that the second Arthur's graveler got his hands on Levi the round would be over, so she had to work hard to make sure that didn't happen.

"Levi, come back up and use **watergun**," she commanded her Pokémon, her voice full of determination.

The tadpole Pokémon did what was asked and hit the rock type with a strong watergun, knocking it back and doing a significant amount of damage. As the Pokémon tried to recover itself, Myst called for another water attack, sending a **bubble beam** in the gravelers direction.

"Gravedigger use **protect**," Arthur commanded. "Now try **rockthrow**."

"Levi. **Dig**," Myst responded, calling the defence before Gravedigger could begin his attack.

Arthur smiled. "Stop rock throw Grave'," he told his Pokémon. "Use **earthquake**."

Gravedigger changed tactics on demand, and the arena shock with the force of the attack. The poliwag was forced to return to the surface by the attack, and a significant amount of damage done.

"Use **watergun**," Myst commanded.

"Grave'. **Tackle**."

The graveler raced towards the poliwag as a stream of water flew towards him. Forcing his way throw the stream of water, Gravedigger slammed into the tiny water Pokémon, although with far less strength than intended. The tadpole flew back from the force, and Myst gasped, running to its side.

"Poliwag is unable to battle," Sapphire intoned, calling the round.

"Good job, Levi," Myst whispered as she returned the Pokémon. She thought carefully about her next choice. Water Pokémon were strongest against rock types, but her goldeen would be vulnerable to attacks on land. Grass were also strong against rock, but like Levi, Wasabi would look positively dimunitive along side Arthur's Pokémon.

But Wasabi was strong; she had been training the grass type longer than she had Levi and the radish Pokémon had proven itself in the few battles she had participated in. And so with a determined nod, she sent her oddish onto the field.

She acted quickly, knowing she would have to be on the offensive from the start, and called for **stun spore**. With graveler paralyzed, she finished the rock type off with mega drain.

"Graveler is unable to battle."

Arthur nodded seriously and called his second rock type. "Go Wario," he called, sending out a sudowoodo. "Use wood hammer."

Wario began to charge while Myst called for Wasabi to dodge and use **stun spore**. Arthur smiled as though it was exactly what he was hoping for and called for Wario to use **mimic**. Two stun spore attacks were released and the two Pokémon were temporarily paralyzed.

"Come on, Wasabi," Myst pleaded with her Pokémon. "Come out of it and use **mega drain** before it wears off."

Wasabi narrowed its eyes as it fought the attack and tried to break the paralysis. With a yell, the oddish began to glow brightly and change form.

"Yes!" Myst cheered at her newly evolved Pokémon. "Now use mega drain," she commanded, seeing that Wasabi's evolution to gloom had broken the paralysis. Wario began to come out of his paralysis as he was hit by the attack, and Arthur winced at the damage done.

"Wario use **rock throw**," he called, knowing that Myst would not give him the chance to fully recover.

Myst cringed. There was no way that Wasabi had the speed to dodge that sort of attack. "Use **bullet seed**, Wasabi," she commanded, going offensive once again. Both attacks hit their targets and the two were clearly down to the last of their strength.

"Draw this round?" Arthur asked, looking at their two depleted Pokémon. Myst nodded and the two withdrew their Pokémon. "Go Reaper," Arthur called.

"It's your turn Penny," Myst responded sending her pichu into the foray. She was starting to think she needed to get some bigger Pokémon – her entire team looked cute and tiny next to what Arthur had on him. But she had been saving Penny for Reaper, knowing full well that Penny was the strongest of her Pokémon and would have better luck against the grass type than against Arthur's rock Pokémon.

Using the size discrepancies to his advantage, Arthur called for his exeggutor to use **stomp**. Myst called for Penny to dodge and try a **thunderwave**. Penny's attack hit and Reaper was momentarily dazed.

"Penny use sweet kiss," Myst called, and the tiny yellow mouse planted a kiss on each of exeggutor's three heads. Whilst confusion set in Myst shared a brief nod with Penny and readied herself for the final attack, backing away from her foe. "Penny. **Volt tackle**!"

Penny's body became engulfed in a surge of electricity. She charged at Reaper, hitting him dead on with the attack. Reaper was forced backwards, falling to the ground as the electric charge coursed through them.

"Exeggutor is unable to battle. Match goes to Myst!" Sapphire cheered, calling the match.

"That was one hell of a battle," an older male commented, drawing the attention of the four youngsters. "You sure you don't want to be a gym leader, Arthur?"

"Uncle Forrest," Sapphire said happily. "I thought you'd be busy with Nurse Joy."

"She had a date," he said sadly, dropping to the ground and curling him self up in his little anime ball of melancholy.

"Hey, um . . . Forrest," Myst said awkwardly, tapping Sapphire and Arthur's uncle lightly on the shoulder.

"Yes?" he asked hopefully, turning to face her.

"Can I have my badge now?"

* * *

Misty sighed as she dumped her self tiredly down on the couch. Another long day in the gym was over, and she could at least take solace in the fact that Saturday meant a late start.

Stephen had left in a huff several days ago to go to his bug conference, and Robinson had gone home for the weekend meaning she had the whole place to herself. It was eerily silent, and try as she might, Misty couldn't resist the sense of dread and foreboding it instilled in her.

She quickly turned on the television to quell the silence.

**_"And now we begin with today's leading story,"_** the news reporter intoned urgently. **_"Breaking news – a volcanic eruption has occurred on Kanto's Cinnabar Island. Many properties, including the Cinnabar gym, were destroyed in the process and late warning gave very little time for inhabitants to evacuate."_**

Misty's sense of dread seemed to increase with each word, and she sat on the edge of her seat just waiting for them to explain away her feelings.

**_"Sources tell us that Pokémon Master, Ash Ketchum, was on Cinnabar at the time in order to speak at a conference, and he is currently missing,"_** the newsreader continued. They continued to speak about the mounting casualties and the efforts of rescuers, but Misty had ceased to listen.

_'Not Ash,'_ she thought to herself, tears breaking free from her eyes. It had been a long time since she had cried like this. _'Please lord,'_ she begged silently. _'Anyone but Ash.'_

Her heart ached. It broke all over again.

He was gone. He was everything, and he was gone.

**_"This just in,"_** the news reporter added. **_"Reports confirm that Ash Ketchum was not in fact in attendance of the conference, and cancelled his appearance last minute. The Pokémon Master sends his condolences to all those who had loved ones . . ."_**

Relief washed over her.

Misty couldn't help but laugh at the turbulent spectrum of emotions she had passed through in mere minutes. One moment she had been broken and in tears as she grieved the only man she ever loved, the next she was on top of the world – overjoyed even – by the mere news of his safety.

It seemed that Ash Ketchum was still the master of her emotions.

A ringing phone pierced her thoughts, dragging her away from the television.

"Hello," she answered, her happiness evident in her voice.

_"Hello, is this Misty Waterflower,"_ the voice on the other end asked.

_"_Speaking," Misty replied nervously. The feeling of dread was returning.

_"Ms. Waterflower,"_ the voice replied sadly. _"I'm so sorry. It's about your husband . . ."_

~ to be continued ~

Don't you think that last line of Myst's was such an Ash thing to say? Guess she really is his daughter. I actually quite like that chapter, mostly cause I think that Arthur is super-adorable with his blatant flirting with Myst who - being Ash's daughter, and well, ten - is completely oblivious to it.

Ironically, this is actually what my co-author wanted to do with Stephen from the beginning, but I kept insisting the sucker had to live. But how can you have an AAMR if Misty's got a husband I ask you. Especially seeing as she was apparently relatively happy with him right up until chapter five.

Oh well.

Gotta wonder though, if Ash isn't on Cinnabar Island, then where the hell is he? You'll just have to wait 'til the next chapter now won't you.


	9. Flailling

**I'll Take the Tears**

A quick word - just want to say that 'Ashley' is a boys name, not a girls name. 'Ashleigh' is the female variant, so it is perfectly reasonable to call a boy Ashley, it's just that in recent times people have come to treat it as a variant spelling for the girls name. It was a boys name for like a full 350 years before Ashley Olsen came along.

More ArthurxMyst fluff in this one. I think they're my favourite made up couple next to William and Catherine. Yes, I support my own OC ships, there's totally nothing weird about that. I even already named Arthur and Myst's daughter (or Izzy's depending on the fic) - her name is Cecily Slate and she looks almost exactly like Misty but with Sabrina's eyes and Brock's temperament, doesn't she sound adorable?

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything worth owning, 'cept for my laptop, but you can't have that 'cos it's mine and I really like it.

* * *

_So you take the smiles . . . from all of our years _

_. . . I'll take the tears . . ._

_

* * *

_

I'll Take the Tears – Flailing

Sapphire glared at her brother as they neared Cerulean City.

"What?" he questioned quietly, trying not to capture the attention of their two friends. Myst walked ahead of them, leading the way as she proved to be the only one with any sense of direction. Ashley dawdled behind tending to yet another surreptitiously captured Pokémon – this time a growlithe, which actually rounded out his team of accidentally captured Pokémon quite nicely.

Sapphire gave him another harsh glare before finally answering him in a clipped tone. "I know you threw that match, big brother," she told him darkly. "I know exactly what you're up to, and I won't stand for it."

Arthur scoffed at her words. "I'm not up to anything, Saph," he answered flippantly. "Myst won that fair and square."

"I'm not arguing that," she hissed back, "I'm saying that you could have won that match easy. I know which Pokémon you're carrying around and which ones you've been training with the longest – you could have won easily with your houndour, or abra, or even Haunter.

"In other words," she finished pointedly, "you threw the match."

"You're not serious, Saph," he responded indignantly. "I just underestimated Penny. That's all. Quit being so paranoid, mei mei."

Sapphire just huffed, unconvinced by Arthur's justification. It was a noob mistake to underestimate Myst's Pokémon, one that someone as perceptive as Arthur shouldn't have made. It wasn't the sort of mistake you made if you knew Myst, or if you knew where she had gotten her pichu from, and Arthur had absolutely no excuse for making it. Sapphire was right to be suspicious.

"Just know I'm watching you," she warned in an ominous tone, before happily skipping off to walk beside her best friend. The two girls began chatting animatedly, and Arthur almost doubted that the conversation had even happened.

It wasn't long before the foursome had arrived in Cerulean City. As they got closer, Ashley began to fidget conspicuously, slowing down the group to some extent.

"Something wrong, Ashley?" the ever observant Arthur questioned, slowing his pace to match Ashley's steps.

Ashley nodded and pointed down to the newly acquired Pokémon tugging at his pant leg. The wee growlithe seemed to be opposed to a Pokéball, and Ashley just didn't have the heart to put him in one.

"How on earth am I going to explain this to Mum?" he complained. "I can't even hide the fact that I'm bringing a fire type into her gym."

"It could be worse," Arthur offered with a shrug. "At least it's not a bug Pokémon."

Ashley acquiesced to Arthur's point, and began to pick up his pace, approaching his home with a little more enthusiasm than before.

As the foursome got closer to the gym, they noted a small crowd being ushered out by a pink haired woman. The crowd looked disheartened as they bowed their heads and went on their way.

"I wonder what your aunt is doing here?" Sapphire asked curiously, turning her head in Ashley's direction as she spoke. "I guess she's comforting them after another embarrassing defeat from your mother," she joked knowing full well how tough Misty could be on the wanna-be trainers.

Ash groaned painfully, his whole demeanour darkening. "If she's here," he sighed, "then the _triplets_ can't be far behind."

Arthur sighed happily in a way that would remind anyone that knew better of his father in his younger days before he settled down to the one woman man he always professed to be. "_Daphne . . . Azalea . . . Wisteria . . ._" he said with a dreamy expression, his face burning brightly. "My poisonous trio of flowers. Both deadly and beautiful . . ."

"Snap out of it, lover boy" Sapphire commanded, whacking her brother none to gently on the side of the head. "You haven't even seen them and you're already going all goofy."

After waving off the trainers, Lily – Ashley's youngest aunt – turned in their direction, racing towards them as she spotted her young nephew.

"Ashley, thank god you're here," she said quickly, pulling the twelve year old into an unexpected hug. "You're mum just isn't taking the news like at all," she explained. "She totally hasn't left her room since she heard."

"Heard what?" Ashley questioned, his features creasing into a frown. "What news, Aunt Lily?"

"You don't know?" his aunt replied, her eyes shining with sympathy. She held him even tighter, which immediately aroused worry in Ashley and his friends.

"Aunt Lily, what is it?" he demanded. "What's wrong with Mum?"

"Oh, Ashy," she said softly, sinking down to her knees in front of him, "I wish I wasn't the one who like had to tell you this. There's been an accident on Cinnabar Island – the Volcano totally erupted."

Ashley nodded silently, not seeing the relevance of her words.

"Ashley, your dad was at like a conference at the time," she explained almost reluctantly, her words slow and heavy with emotion. "He was on Cinnabar, Ashy. He's dead."

"No, you're lying," Ashley insisted petulantly, his eyes filling up with tears. "Stop lying."

"I wish I like was," she replied, her body slumping in defeat. "I'm so sorry."

"No," Ashley argued. "I'll go see Mum. She'll prove that you're lying."

"Ashley!" she called as the boy raced off in the direction of the gym, not giving a thought to those that remained.

"Chibi, I think you should go call your dad," Arthur said seriously, his eyes trained on the door of the Cerulean Gym.

"Why?" Myst replied, not seeing why Arthur was suddenly so insistent about contacting her dad when her newest friend had just lost his.

"Didn't you say your dad was going to a conference on an island," Arthur replied, his tone becoming grim.

Myst gulped back a gasp, but shook her head as she responded. "It's fine," she said, trying to assure both herself and Arthur. "If it wasn't then the whole world would know."

"All the same . . ." Arthur suggested pensively, not wanting to articulate the thought aloud.

She nodded quietly.

"I'll go make sure Ashley's alright," Arthur said, taking charge of the situation. "Saph, you go with Myst to the Pokémon Centre and call dad when you get there. If he doesn't already know, then he needs to.

"I'm sure you're right," he added, putting a comforting hand on Myst shoulder, "but for peace of mind's sake it won't hurt to call."

He moved off, gently leading Lily back into the gym and only looking back to send Myst back a reassuring wink.

Sapphire watched the exchange with great interest. She supposed there were worse people for Myst than her own brother, although she wouldn't exactly be jumping for joy if it happened. For now there were more pressing matters to occupy them, and the sooner they were on their way, the sooner they would all know.

She didn't think she could take anymore bad news today.

* * *

Misty's own words repeated in her head again and again, antagonizing her and ripping open the wounds of old.

_'Anyone but Ash,'_ she had said, meaning it more than she had ever meant anything in her life, _'anyone but him.'_

It wasn't a choice; it was merely plea. She hadn't meant to bargain with the life of another to ease her heart. She hadn't meant to sacrifice one life for another.

And the worst part was, her heart wouldn't let her take it back. It had made its choice. It would rather lose a husband than be in a world without Ash Ketchum.

It wasn't grief that fuelled her tears, although that was a part of it. Nor was it the loss of her husband that had her shutting herself away from the world. It was guilt. Guilt because she didn't feel as sad as she should about Stephen's death. Guilt because it was hard to feel this pain past the happiness and relief of knowing that Ash was unharmed and unscathed.

She didn't cry for Stephen, but rather for herself. Her heart was heavy with feelings of regret and the occasional 'what if . . . ?' She tried not to think about what she would have done if Ash really had died, the pain too much to bear with, and instead force herself to focus on her husband and not her ex-friend.

She needed to get away from this place. There were too many reminders. There was too much around her just burdening her heart. Too much to forget.

She heard a tentative knock on her bedroom door, but did not answer. Instead she turned her back on the door and curled herself into a ball beneath the warm blankets. She knew by the sound of the gait as they walked in that it was Ashley and she knew that he needed her, but she couldn't bring herself to share in his grief.

"Mum?" he asked in a small voice, his sadness seeming to fill the room and suffocate her with the fact that she could not muster even a fraction of his feelings. She just curled deeper into her ball, not really knowing what to do with herself, let alone how to help her son through this.

"Mum," he said again, a sob escaping his lips. "Lily said . . . but she's lying . . . isn't she?"

Misty offered words of condolence but simply shrunk further into her dismal little world.

She heard Lily's voice a moment later and her older sister led him away. And Misty was left alone to her thoughts.

"Not Ash," she taunted cruelly, her voice barely a whisper in the silent room.

"Anyone but Ash."

* * *

Myst bit her lip as she stood before the video screen. She tried to reassure herself, reminding herself of the words she had spoken to Arthur. If something had happened to her dad, there would be no way to avoid it. It would be on every news station and everyone would be talking about it. But all the same . . .

_"Hello,"_ a voice answered on the other end.

"Nana," Myst replied quietly, her voice almost breaking with emotions. "Nana, is dad there?" she asked.

"_Honey, what's wrong?"_ Delia asked softly, immediately sensing the turmoil in her young granddaughter.

"I just . . . I just wanted to t-talk to dad," she replied. She was almost in tears as she spoke; a fear lodging itself in her heart. She had tried him at home and there had been no answer, and if he wasn't at her grandma's house, then Myst wasn't really sure where else to look.

"_He just left here, Myst,"_ Delia told her, "_I think he's heading straight home if you need to talk to him."_

Relief immediately washed over her, and Myst let it all out in one shuddered breath.

_"Mystique, is everything alright?"_ Delia questioned in a concerned tone. _"Where are you?"_

"I'm okay," Myst replied, although her watery smile was unconvincing. "Can you get dad to call me? I'll be at the Cerulean gym. Something bad happened, and I just wanted to make sure he was . . ."

_"I will, honey,"_ Delia promised. _"Don't worry. Everything is okay."_

Myst just nodded shakily as she bid her grandmother farewell.

"You alright, Myst?" Sapphire asked as she wrapped her arms around her best friend. Myst nodded silently as tears streamed down her face and fell into her friend's arms.

"I just don't know what I'd do if he . . ." Myst sobbed quietly. "He's all I've got, and I . . ."

"Shhh," Sapphire comforted softly. "You don't have to think about that, and I wish Arthur hadn't put the thought in your head," she added in a scolding tone that was clearly meant for her brother.

"No . . . it's-"

Sapphire cut her off before she could finish. "Come on," she suggested as she led her friend away. "We'll go back to the gym. Mum said dad is already on his way, and I bet he brings comfort food."

And so the two girls were on their way, neither knowing the chain of events they had just brought to fruition.

~ to be continued ~

This is kinda a bipolar chapter. It starts all light and then ends with a dark and angsty foreshadowing. Odd.

Hope you liked, and thanks everyone for being so patient.


	10. Escape

"So you take the smiles, from all of our years . . . **I'll Take the Tears**"

* * *

Okay, so I'm gonna start by saying that I am so sorry for just leaving this for so long. I'm not really reviving this story so much as making sure you're not left on a huge cliffhanger. This chapter ends this arc of the story, so although it's definitely not an ending, it does resolve things a little and will leave you all in a much better place. I don't really know when or if I'll be able to finish this (I might aim for an epilogue).

Disclaimer – I don't own Pokémon.

* * *

I'll Take the Tears – Escape

The mood in the Cerulean gym was a sombre one. No one spoke a word. No one knew what to say.

Daisy sighed quietly as she tried her best to comfort the young boy in his arms. He needed his mother, and Daisy was not in the position to offer him what he needed. She and her sisters had never thought much of Ashley's father, but they loved Misty and they loved Ashley, so they would never say a word against him, especially now that he was gone.

She glanced up at Violet as she came down the stairs shaking her head. It seemed Misty still wasn't eating, even with Brock in the kitchen cooking her favourite dishes. The breeder was desperately trying to entice his friend, but she showed no interest in their company or anything else for that matter. She had simply shut herself away to wallow in self-pity and guilt.

The room was slowly filling up with friends and family. Several of Ashley's cousins were now dotted around, along with the additional Slate or two and a Sketchit for good measure. All of his mother's closest friends had come to support her, and she had turned each and every one of them away. Nothing they said could pull her out of this depression and self-loathing.

Ding Dong!

The occupants of the room started at the sound of the doorbell.

"That'll be Gary," Daisy responded quietly. "Lil', could you like let him in?" she asked her younger sister. "And if he didn't bring the Pokechow with him, send him back out," she added as an after thought.

Lily nodded as she followed Daisy's instructions, however, when she opened the door she was not met by the stony blue eyes of Gary Oak, but rather the chocolate brown eyes of a tall dark haired man who seemed oddly familiar.

"Is Myst here?" he asked, his voice frantic and full of worry. "Is she okay?"

Lily shook her head, blinking at him curiously. She hadn't heard anyone use that name in so long – in almost twenty years – and it sparked a memory of a much happier Misty who almost seemed to shine in the most beautiful way.

"Where is she?" he asked again, his worry intensified by her response.

She pointed up to the stairs, her body seeming to respond automatically to the demanding tone in his voice. "First door on the right," she added.

He pushed past her impatiently, not waiting for further instruction.

Lily just continued to blink in awe as she walked back to the room. The wonder was still evident on her face and she could hardly find the words to describe what had happened.

Daisy gave her sister a worrying look. "What's wrong, Lil'?" she asked, her face creasing into a frown.

Lily returned the look with a frown of her own. She spoke dully, still barely able to articulate the events. "Ash is here," she said unsurely, not quite believing it herself.

Violet rolled her eyes, not quite understanding the significance of Lily's statement. "No duh," she replied gesturing towards their twelve-year-old nephew who looked up with interest.

"No, Vi," Lily replied in a serious tone, shaking her head. _"ASH_ is here," she repeated, her words more heavily intoned this time. She elaborated after a few moments silence. "As in – like – Ash Ketchum."

Myst looked up at this. "My dad's here?" she asked, wondering why he wouldn't just call her like she asked him to. She supposed that her grandmother had probably panicked a little at seeing her so distressed, and her father might have gotten the wrong idea. "Where'd he go?"

The eyes of the three Sensational Sisters turned upon Myst, each of them assessing the young girl and all her qualities. "Oh dear," Lily muttered quietly. "I think I might have just done something like really bad."

"Lily, what did you do?" Daisy questioned, feeling a sense of impending doom.

"Well, he like asked for 'Myst'," she replied in a flustered voice, desperately trying to explain herself. "And I like assumed . . . oh I don't know . . . I just assumed he was like here for her. You know it would be just like her little boyfriend to show up out of the blue like this right when she needs him."

Daisy could say nothing response, knowing it was an easy mistake to make. She would have done the same.

Violet just gave them all a gentle, understanding smile. "If like anyone could get her through this, it's him," she said quietly, voicing aloud the words they all knew for themselves.

They had all tried in their own ways, but perhaps now it was time to leave it in the hand of fate. If there was one thing that could get through to her . . . it would be him.

* * *

Ash raced up the stairs to the room that Lily directed him to. It didn't even occur to him to wonder what his daughter was doing in there. All he could think of was her. It was strange – this was the first time he had turned his thoughts to Cerulean City and not thought of Misty Waterflower.

The way Delia had described her mannerisms and tone when she called put him on edge. His daughter was so strong – just like her namesake – and so for her to be so distraught he knew there had to be something wrong, and a phone call would simply not suffice to ease his worry.

He called her name gently as he entered the room, his concern intensifying as his eyes fell upon the lone figure curled up in the middle of the bed. He knew instantly that this was not his daughter, Mystique Ketchum, but a different female altogether who sent his heart racing and seemed to fill him with a plethora of emotions he couldn't begin to name or categorize.

"Leave me alone," she insisted without even looking in his direction, as he made his way further into the room. "I just want to be alone. I deserve to be alone," she added quietly.

He gasped at her words. "Misty, that's not true," he insisted quietly. Forgetting himself and the two decades that had separated them, he sat on the edge of the bed and reached out towards her, laying a gentle touch on her shoulder. "Misty, you deserve only good things."

She turned to face this new visitor – her first initiation of human contact in days. "Ash?" she asked quietly, her eyes blinking back tears. For a moment she thought he was some spectre, thrown out by her guilty conscience to taunt her. "Is it really you?"

"Yeah, Mist'," he replied gently. "It's me.

"Misty, I'm so sor-" he began, but his words were cut off as the young woman flung herself into his arms, sobbing lightly into his chest.

"Thank god you're ok," she whispered. "When I saw the news . . . when they said . . . I was so relieved, Ash."

"Hey," he responded lightly, pulling away so she could see the crocked grin rested upon his lips. "It'll take more than a volcano to do away with _the_ Ash Ketchum."

She returned his grin with a watery smile. "You're right," she laughed. "How could I forget? You're practically invincible."

They shared a meaningful look, and for that moment it seemed like no time had passed between them at all. It was as though the years that went by were meaningless and they were just the same two kids they were all those years ago.

But the moment couldn't last. Misty was broken free of it with a renewed sense of guilt.

"I shouldn't be this happy to see you," she said, reluctantly pulling herself away from the only place that ever felt like home. "I shouldn't . . . I should . . ."

Misunderstanding her actions, Ash's features took on a look of anguish. "Misty, I know the way we left things was . . . well . . . bad," he said awkwardly for lack of a better word, "but you're still my best friend, Misty, and I hope you feel the same."

"No it's not that," she insisted. "You are, Ash. You always are."

She bit her lip nervously as she struggled to find the words. She wasn't sure how she wanted to phrase her loss.

"Didn't you just say I was your best friend," he joked lightly. "You can tell me anything, Misty."

She took a deep breath. "My husband was on Cinnabar," she said lowly, allowing Ash to fill in the gaps.

He let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding with a loud 'woosh'. "I'm sorry, Misty," he told her sincerely, the words only partially marred by his conflicting emotions. He was happy that she was single (sort of) but he hated that she was sad. He was jealous that she had found someone, but glad that she had had love in her life at least until recently.

"I can't be here," she admitted painfully. "I can't deal with this. Any of this. I feel so lost and empty and being here just makes it worse."

"Then leave," he suggested innocently.

She shook her head. "You make it sound so easy, Ash," she told him with a look a amusement briefly flashing through her eyes. "I have nowhere to go."

He barely gave it a thought before he spoke. "You could come with me?" he replied, a hopeful look lighting up his face. "I have to go to the Orange Islands and you could come with me, Mist'. It would be just like old times."

"But, Ash, what about-"

"Leave that to me," he promised, cutting her off mid-protest. He knew he was breaking down her resistance. "Just say yes and I'll deal with everything. Your sisters or whatever else."

Misty studied him for a moment, almost not believing that he was real. "Are you sure?" she asked him unsurely. "Are you sure you want me with you?"

"Of course," he agreed. "Pack your things and I'll go explain."

He left quickly and headed down stairs, following the low murmur of voices to a room filled with mourners.

"Dad," Myst greeted cheerfully as she spotted him, flinging herself into her father's arms. "I was so scared, dad," she whispered into his stomach. "I don't want to lose you."

"You'll never lose me," he promised as he hoisted her up into his arms.

"Don't ever do that to me again," she admonished, whacking his shoulder to emphasise her point. "I don't like worrying about you, dad," she pouted.

"Alright," he acquiesced. "What are you doing here?" he asked her, his eyes carefully scanning the room full of familiar faces. She squirmed in his arms, which was a silent instruction to be let down from her position. She moved towards Daisy and a young boy seated on the couch, gesturing for him to follow.

"Ashley, this is my dad, Ash Ketchum," she told the boy. "Dad, this is my friend Ashley Waterflower."

Ash gaped at the dark haired boy stared back at him with a familiar pair of green blue eyes. "You're Misty's son," he said quietly, the realization coming to him quickly. "I'm sorry about your loss."

"Thank you," Ashley replied quietly.

"I think the adults should all head to the kitchen," Tracey suggested suddenly before they could all lapse into silent. He nodded at the three sisters and Gary who had arrived in Ash's absence. A brief nod from Robinson and Malachi assured him that the two boys would keep the younger ones distracted while the grownups spoke.

In the kitchen Brock was preparing more food for those gathered. He was probably getting more use out of the kitchen in a couple of days than Misty had in her thirty-five years of life. The plate of food he was carrying dropped to the floor with a loud clatter as he caught sight of Ash.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, searching the faces of the others for some sort of explanation.

"I'm here to comfort a friend," Ash replied simply, picking at a nearby plate of food with forced indifference.

"Which would be fine if it were any other friend," Tracey replied, voicing all of their thoughts aloud. "You do realize she _just_ lost her husband."

"I know," Ash responded defiantly. "I'm not trying to do anything. I'm just trying to help."

"And how do you propose to do that?" Gary scoffed, giving Ash a knowing look.

"By being her friend," Ash told him. "She can't stay here so I'm going to take her with me to the Orange Islands."

"You can't do that," Daisy protested.

"She needs to be here," Violet added.

"I'm not asking your permission," Ash replied with a hard look. "I'm just letting you know that she's going with me."

"But what about, like, Ashley?" Daisy asked. "He _needs_ his mother," she added in a serious tone that seemed almost alien coming from her lips.

"I know," was Ash's sombre response, "but not like this."

The words struck home with Misty's sisters and friends.

"Alright, Ash," Brock agreed. "But you bring her back at the end of this month."

"And Ashley?" he asked, almost grimacing at the thought.

"I'll tell him," Daisy offered, "but don't think that any of us are happy about this.

"Just look after Misty," she finished with a sigh. "And if you like hurt her, Ash Ketchum, so help you I will like not hesitate to make you suffer."

"I won't," Ash promised. "Not again. Never again."

~ End of Arc 1 ~


End file.
